Politics are never cut and dry. So it was no surprise when many pro-life Republicans voted to overturn President George W. Bush's veto of H.R. 810 last Tuesday. The bill, also known as the "Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2005," called for an improvement in stem-cell research techniques by allowing federally funded research on new stem-cell lines. It fell 51 votes short of the two-thirds majority required to override the veto.

According to the Pew Research Center, a nonpartisan polling organization that tracks the issue, roughly two-thirds of all Democrats and independents favor embryonic stem-cell research and nearly half of all Republicans do.

Embryonic stem cells are derived from the inner cell mass of a blastocyst, which is an early stage embryo, developed for approximately four to five days. These cells can develop into each of the more than 200 cell types of the adult body when given sufficient stimulation.

The embryos currently available for research were originally created for the in vitro fertilization process. After determining they would never be implanted in a woman, the embryos were donated via written informed consent by the patient.

Currently, couples have four choices for their remaining frozen embryos: leave them in storage for up to five years, donate them to an infertile couple, donate them to research or allow them to thaw and be destroyed. Right now, this choice is made by the couple and leaves us with the question of whether or not taxpayer money should be used to fund the research on these embryos.

A nationwide survey conducted by the American Society of Reproductive Medicine and the Rand Corporation found that 400,000 unused frozen embryos are currently being stored in fertility clinics. That is 400,000 embryos that could save millions of lives or be implanted into a woman in hope of the creation of a child. Instead, in fear of another couple carrying a child with their genes or donating the potential life that they created, the embryo will be tossed out, without a second thought. Talk about a lack of respect for science and potential life.

If the embryo is already there, why not allow science the funding to make miracles happen?

In August 2001, Bush announced his administration would allow federal funding only for research on the 60 stem-cell lines that existed at the time. Since then, researchers have discovered that many of those lines are contaminated and unsuitable for research.

The option of using adult stem cells is still being pursued, but the limitations are disheartening. Adult cells are already specialized, so their potential to regenerate damaged tissue is very limited. Stem cells are also absent from many adult vital organs, so when those tissues are damaged, only embryonic cells with the capability to become any type of human tissue have the potential to repair them.

The stem-cell research debate is as close to home in Madison as it can get. In 1998, a group led by James Thomson at the University of Wisconsin-Madison developed a technique to isolate and grow the cells when derived from human blastocysts. Since then, research has continued and is believed to have the capability of discovering therapy via replacement cells and tissues to help those with Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases, spinal cord injuries, diabetes, strokes, burns and more.

Gov. Jim Doyle responded to the presidential veto by saying that, "In spite of the action taken by President Bush last week that flies in the face of what the Congress and what the public wants, we will not turn our backs on the countless families who hope that science may one day unlock the cures to diseases long thought incurable." He continued, "Wisconsin will continue to move forward with stem-cell research. We will continue or efforts to capture 10 percent of the stem cell market by 2015 and we will continue working on the Institutes for Discovery and will become one of the world's leading centers in biotechnology and stem-cell research."

Forget party affiliations and morals, this is an issue centered on funding, which should be made readily available so that the infancy of stem-cell research can mature and save lives.

Joelle Parks ([email protected]) is a junior majoring in journalism.