Despite a threatened second veto, the U.S. Senate passed legislation Wednesday that would end President George W. Bush's federal funding ban on embryonic stem-cell research.
The 63-34 approval joins a sister bill passed in January by the House 253-174 — both votes falling short of the two-thirds requirement to override a presidential veto.
"I believe this will encourage taxpayer money to be spent on the destruction or endangerment of living human embryos — raising serious moral concerns for millions of Americans," Bush said in a release Wednesday.
But Sen. Herb Kohl, D-Wis., said vetoing the bill would ruin much of the progress that has been made thus far.
"It would be unconscionable for the federal government to turn its back on the discoveries that expanding stem-cell research promises," said Sen. Herb Kohl, D-Wis., in a statement to the Senate Wednesday. "I'm proud that some of this research is being done at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, which was the first to isolate human embryonic stem cells."
Earlier this month, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office announced a preliminary decision to investigate and possibly eliminate three of UW's stem cell patents. The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation is forming a response to the decision, but Wisconsin's governor has already voiced his opposition.
"Based on my many conversations with experts in the field over the past few years, I am confident that these patents will ultimately be upheld," Democratic Gov. Jim Doyle said in an April 3 statement. "As long as I am governor, the state will aggressively invest in, support and nurture this research."
On Wednesday, Doyle and nine other governors sent a letter to Senate leaders urging passage of the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2007.
"The President is out of touch on this issue," the letter said. "Every day, thousands of families in our states struggle as a loved one suffers from juvenile diabetes, spinal cord injuries or other conditions that might be cured if restrictions are lifted."
Doyle signed the page-long letter with the Democratic governors, including New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, a 2008 presidential hopeful.
Richardson, who would be the country's first Hispanic president, also signed a letter with Doyle and six other governors last year while Congress first attempted to override Bush's funding ban.
This time around, the letter picked up newly elected governors Chet Culver of Iowa, Eliot Spitzer of New York and Ted Strickland of Ohio.
Carla Vigue, a spokeswoman for Doyle, said the letter shows President Bush that there is support beyond Congress for stem cell research.
"We're hopeful the Senate will have enough to get past the veto majority," Vigue said.
Before reaching President Bush, Congress will need to choose one version of the bill. Most experts say the House will adopt the Senate's bill in the next month.
"Once again, Congress has the opportunity to reverse a misguided stem cell policy," the letter said. "Overturning this policy will result in new federal investment in the important research and provide hope to families around the world suffering from terrible diseases."
But Bush reaffirmed his stance against the bill Wednesday.
"This bill crosses a moral line that I and many others find troubling," Bush said in the release. "If it advances all the way through Congress to my desk, I will veto it."
