Missouri lawmakers repsond to executive order
Today President Barack Obama has signed an executive order that lifted restrictions on stem cell research that were put into place during the tenure of Obama's predecessor, George Bush.
"We will vigorously support scientists who pursue this research," Obama said in remarks after signing the bill, which were obtained from a White House press release. " And we will aim for America to lead the world in the discoveries it one day may yield."
The ban on stem cell research, issued by Bush in 2001, had restricted federal funding to just a few pre-existing lines, some of which, according to a report published by Forbes, were unusable by scientists for high quality research.
In a release, U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., praised Obama's measure.
“The fact that President Obama is willing to once again say to the rest of world that we will be the beacon for cures and hope is encouraging," she stated in the release. "My religion teaches me to heal the sick and God gave us this intelligence to find cures for the sick."
In an e-mail message, Paul Sloca, the spokesman for U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer, R-Mo., said, considering recent advances in scientific research, Obama's decision to executive order was "unnecessarily divisive."
"To date, there has been more success with non-embryonic stem cell research than with embryonic stem cell research and that’s why there is no reason to force taxpayers to fund research that will destroy human embryos," Sloca stated. "The current policy has allowed for important medical breakthroughs thanks to research conducted in a responsible and moral manner and the president should rescind his decision and bring Americans together under sound science instead of divide through political appeasement.”