Obama Administration Asks Court to Unfreeze Embryonic Stem Cell Research
EmailABC News' Ariane de Vogue, Jason Ryan and Jake Tapper report:
The Obama administration filed court papers on Wednesday asking a federal judge to suspend an order he issued last week that blocked the use of federal funds for embryonic stem cell research.
"The court’s order causes irrevocable harm to the millions of extremely sick or injured people who stand to benefit from continuing research,” said Justice Department spokeswoman Tracy Schmaler.
On August 23rd, District Court Judge Royce Lamberth stunned the medical community when he issued a preliminary injunction against the funding, ruling it violated a 1996 law that forbids federal support for research that involves destruction or damage to a human embryo.
The administration today asked the Court to allow the funding to continue while the case is appealed “in order to avoid terminating research projects midstream, invalidating results in process and impeding or negating years of scientific progress toward finding new treatments for devastating illnesses such as diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, and blindness, as well as crippling spinal cord injuries, through research involving human embryonic stem cells.”
Since Judge Lamberth’s ruling, the National Institutes of Health has suspended millions of dollars of pending research grants associated with embryonic stem cell research.
In a statement filed with the court, NIH director Dr. Francis Collins said, “NIH has directly invested over $546 million of taxpayers’ money in human embryonic stem cell research since 2001. The anticipated financial loss to NIH and to the taxpaying public is enormous and would include the hundreds of millions already spent on interrupted projects and the administrative costs of shutting down and restarting the NIH regulatory regime.”
The administration contends that no embryos are actually destroyed with federal funds and that the monies only pay for research conducted under strict ethical guidelines on derived stem cells.
“We’ve said from day one that embryonic stem cell research is a top priority for this administration, and we’re going to do everything possible to prevent the potentially catastrophic consequences of this injunction,” said White House spokesman Reid Cherlin.
Critics disagree with the distinction in how federal funds are used and oppose efforts by the administration to keep the injuction in place. “They crossed a line in science,” says Dr. David Stevens, of the Christian Medical Association, which was an original plaintiff in the case.
The new guidelines were issued in 2009 after President Obama signed an executive order expanding the use of federal funds for embryonic stem cell research.
“Giving an inducement to scientists to destroy human beings is wrong," said Stevens. “You don’t destroy one individual in pursuit of scientific knowledge."
Gregory Wasson, who is suffering from Parkinson’s disease and serves as a patient advocate, told ABC News he fears the research will be tied up for months while the appeal process takes place. “Every moment counts at this point in my life, day by day my motor skills decrease. The funding for future research is essential.”
-Ariane de Vogue, Jason Ryan and Jake Tapper
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Non-embryonic stem cells are actually saving lives NOW. Stop throwing money away on research to do research so we can do more research.
The POTUS keeps asking for result-oriented focus. Fine, spend research money on non-embryonic stem cell research. It has already produced results.
Posted by: malcat | August 31, 2010, 7:25 pm 7:25 pm
Yes and lets do what with the large number of unused embrios that have been donated to science because the people have had the babies that they want? Is it not better to thaw them and create stem lines that have the potential to save a life or is it morally better to just destroy them?
Posted by: John | August 31, 2010, 8:43 pm 8:43 pm
agian Obama wants to void the laws of the usa.
Posted by: james | August 31, 2010, 8:52 pm 8:52 pm
“agian Obama wants to void the laws of the usa.”
Is it against the law to appeal to a court?
People have become so anti Obama that they loose all sense of logic.
Posted by: thinksome | August 31, 2010, 9:17 pm 9:17 pm
The ends do not justify the means. Embrionic stem cell research is morally unacceptable. All of the major breakthroughs have been done using adult stem cells.
Posted by: Tony | August 31, 2010, 9:24 pm 9:24 pm
‘Giving an inducement to scientists to destroy human beings is wrong,” said Stevens. “You don’t destroy one individual in pursuit of scientific knowledge.”
Yet we have no problem ending human life in pursuit of freedom. These are not humans yet and countless are destroyed by natural human function. We spend billions to explore space, what is so wrong with trying to cure disease?
So let’s see. Does it compare? Destroy an embryo to cure a disease….Send an 18 year old kid to die so I can hit the drive-thru at McDonalds without worrying. Maybe some one else knows something I don’t.
Posted by: Dan Sanders | August 31, 2010, 9:29 pm 9:29 pm
It is not illegal to appeal, it was illegal to fund the research with the stroke of a pen. Obama knew the law and ignored it. Why didn’t he just appeal the law in the first place? Why does he ignore the laws he doesn’t like? And the answer is not that Bush did it too… This was the hope and change candidate, remember? Or is it OK that he never really was?
Posted by: LAN | August 31, 2010, 9:32 pm 9:32 pm
The ends do not justify the means. Embrionic stem cell research is morally unacceptable. All of the major breakthroughs have been done using adult stem cells.
Then it is morally wrong to end any life
for any reason. You cannot have it both ways.
Posted by: Dan Sanders | August 31, 2010, 9:59 pm 9:59 pm
Looking from a strictly scientific viewpoint–I would say extracting early embryonic cells from a whole embryo–does not harm NOT DESTROYS the original embryo.
In a biopsy (PGD) of an early embryo–we extract one or more cells from the embryo to determine genetic defects–even gender–But that does not kill/destroy the embryo.
For instance, say we take a normal 32-celled embryo and extracted 2 cells for biopsy–to determine the health of the embryo before implantation–then that now 30-celled embryo with the next cell division would then have 60 cells then 120 cells–into millions of cells if and when the embryo is implanted and reaches fruition.
Then how can you say extracting embryonic stem cells from an embryo destroys it–when after extracting cells from the embryo for biopsy–a human being/person was still born from the original embryo?
Look at it this way;
Say the early normal embryo is a bowl of primordial soup–where the whole bowl can prouce a single person–or a single drop could produce a single person–Now taking out a few drops (cells) from the soup–will not prevent what soup remains in the bowl to become one or more human beings/persons.
Politicians and judges should have gotten sound scientific knowledge before going forth.
Extracting the early embryonic stem cells for research, in itself, does not harm nor destroys the embryo.
Say a fertility clinic, before an unwanted 32-celled embryo is discarded–”destroyed”–extracts 16 cells from the 32-celled embryo–Now you have 16 cells to do federal research with–and a “live” 16-celled embryo.
If the clinic waits for another round of cell division that 16-celled embryo would become a 32-celled embryo again.
Where the fertility clinic still has the option in accordance with their patients to implant, store/freeze–or stick to the original plan of destroying–throwing away the “live” embryo.
How would that federal judge, pandering “pro-life” politicians– explain HOW the embryo is “destroyed”–in the above scenario.
To be a “pro-life” control freak–lacking science and knowledge–helps!
Posted by: dennis | August 31, 2010, 10:02 pm 10:02 pm
And breakthroughs so far….through which they have discovered an advantage from embryos. Imagine no more cancer deaths or other diseases that plague us. I have no stance on the morality of it. Just that if we are going to embrace a belief, we need to be able to expand it to everything, not just what bothers us.
Posted by: Dan Sanders | August 31, 2010, 10:03 pm 10:03 pm
I was an embryo once… as were you… I am happy for both of us that were were left to develop into loving and loved children, brothers, sisters, parents and grandparents…
Posted by: Life Is Gift, Enjoy it... | August 31, 2010, 10:40 pm 10:40 pm
Embryonic stem cell research is a lot like nuclear fusion… unlimited promise… many years… no results…
Death is darkness…
Life is light…
Don’t let us compel fellow citizens to bring darkness by spending their tax money on a fruitless enterprise…
If there is true potential, then private money will be available…
I have heard that Adult Stem Cell research actually produces results… If we are going to spend public money, which we should not, let’s put the money where it actually produces results…
Posted by: Let's spend wisely | August 31, 2010, 10:48 pm 10:48 pm
The end does justify the means.
One Obama for the means .
Posted by: J P | September 1, 2010, 1:27 am 1:27 am
Once again research with the greatest potential ever known to treat and cure life threatening diseases and injuries has been delayed by scientifically illiterate people who think a 3 day old human embryo is more important than curing the suffering of a man with parkinson’s disease or a child with muscular dystrophy.
The argument that a human embryo is a potential human being simply doesn’t hold water. Every cell in the human body is a potential human being. Every time you scratch your nose you are committing a virtual holocaust.
It is morally indefensible, given that these notions really are prolonging the suffering of 10′s of millions of human beings. If you think that the interests of a blastocyst trumps that of a person with full body burns or little girl with a spinal cord injury, I would have to say that your moral intuitions have been obscured by religious metaphysics. If you truly believe that your god prefers unused human embryos to be destroyed instead being used to help humanity, then your religion has poisoned your mind.
Posted by: bill | September 1, 2010, 7:13 am 7:13 am
If a woman does not choose to impregnate every single egg(embryo) that she produces, then by the standards of those who are against research, she is guilty of murdering a human being.
Posted by: Dan Sanders | September 1, 2010, 8:27 am 8:27 am
This NoBo administration can’t see past it’s nose and has cobwebs in the cranium. C’mon you dufuses, think! Try and figure out where’s the best place to invest the research money. Clue – posters here have told you already, just read Posted by: malcat | Aug 31, 2010 7:25:12 PM
Posted by: Noz | September 1, 2010, 9:08 am 9:08 am
It is well documented in the Bible that Muslins acquire embroyonic stem cells for recruitment of terror babies in the holy crusade against the oppressor regime. Obama ends Iraq so now Matmud Ahmadinajad can infiltrate our cyber constitution in full infancy of the founding father climate bill.
Posted by: Snapple | September 1, 2010, 10:24 am 10:24 am
O.K. snapple..I will try again to answer your silly talk. That kind of talk ispires the taliban…they use it for talking points to recruit new membrs. Many Generals and those in the leadership of this war are concerned about this kind of talk. They are using it to say we hate all religious groups especially the Muslems. Bush told us and he was correct that the Muslems did not bomb on 9/11so we need to give over this nonesense. It is hurting our soldiers who are still fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Posted by: talmag | September 1, 2010, 12:18 pm 12:18 pm
When he doesn’t get his way, he appeals. If that doesn’t work, he’ll issue an executive order. The man is drunk with power and can’t stand when he doesn’t get what he wants so he can fundamentally transform America. We a republic, not a monarchy.
Posted by: DaveMN | September 1, 2010, 6:51 pm 6:51 pm
I was an embryo once… as were you… I am happy for both of us that were were left to develop into loving and loved children, brothers, sisters, parents and grandparents…
____________________________
Sure we all came from embryos–BUT most embryos do not reach fruition and die due to spontnaeous abortions and miscarriages.
The latest medical data show up to 3/4 of conceptions will not reach fruition due to many factors like genetic defects–the females’ medical condition of a propensity for a miscarriage, etc.
Sure we all came from embryos but that does not the embryo already a human being/person.
the oak tree came from the acorn–but not all acorn will become trees.
We don’t call acorns already trees.
from a theological viewpoint–If you adopt the dogma that the conception is already a human being/person–then what must foilow is the warp belief that MOST people will be killed before being born.
Being born is not the end all.
You happy Bin Laden was not aborted?
Posted by: dennis | September 1, 2010, 9:43 pm 9:43 pm
When he doesn’t get his way, he appeals. If that doesn’t work, he’ll issue an executive order. The man is drunk with power and can’t stand when he doesn’t get what he wants so he can fundamentally transform America. We a republic, not a monarchy.
________________
I believe MOST Americans support federally funded embryonic research,
In 2006 and 2008 a bipartisan congress sent two bills to Bush to expand federally funded research on unwanted embryo–Bush vetoed it twice.
Essentially this same 2008 congress have the votes in both houses to pass the bill AGAIN–where this time Obama would sign it.
the insanity part is that in the private sector we are allowed to create and to research on and detroy– all the embryos we want to–BUT no federal funds for research.
THe “pro-life” control freaks do not care if thousands of unwanted embryos are destroyed (thrown in the trash heap) by fertility clinics–BUT heaven forbid we do research on these embryos destined for the garbage can.
Posted by: dennis | September 1, 2010, 9:51 pm 9:51 pm