'GMA' Exclusive: Frist Explains Stem Cell Decision

July 29, 2005 — -- In exclusive interview with "GMA," Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist explained his decision to break with President Bush for the first time, and throw his support behind a bill that would expand federal funding for embryonic stem cell research.

The announcement, made on the Senate floor this morning, increases the chances of the bill passing, and sets up a potential showdown with the White House, which has threatened a veto.

Stem cell research has fueled fierce debate between those who say the cells are the best way to find treatments for diseases like Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and cancer, and opponents who say using embryos is unethical, even if they could eventually save lives.

Last month Frist, a prominent heart and lung surgeon, said he did not support expanded federal financing of stem cell research. He says he now believes the research is promising and deserves federal funding, if the embryos are collected in an "ethically considerate" way.

"I'm doing this as somebody who has convictions," Frist told "GMA." "This is not about politics. It is about policy. It is about principle. It is about human life."

Frist said he remains firm on his pro-life stance, and his support of stem cell research does not contradict his views on abortion.

"I give huge moral significance to the human embryo. It is nascent human life," he said. "What that means is that as we advance science, we treat that embryo with dignity, with respect."

Frist said only embryos that would otherwise be discarded should be used for the research. Those that could be adopted or implanted would not be used.

In 2001, Bush announced that the government should pay only for research of stem cell colonies, or lines, that were created by that date where the "life or death" decision already had been made. At the time there were 78 lines available, but genetic problems and other difficulties currently leave just 22 available for research.

Frist said even the remaining 22 lines were not fit for "human therapy," and therefore Bush's policy should be revised. He will support a bill sponsored by Democratic Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa, a version of which the House has already passed, which allows federal research on stem cell lines created after 2001.