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CNN Live Today
Bush Fires Opening Round in New Cloning Debate
Aired April 10, 2002 - 14:21 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: The stage is set for what could be a pivotal battle over human cloning. In the next several weeks, senators on the various sides of the issue will fight for competing bills designated to regulate the practice. President Bush fired the opening salvo this afternoon.
Our White House correspondent Kelly Wallace joins us now with the details.
Hi -- Kelly.
KELLY WALLACE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hello, to Kyra.
Well, Kyra, as you know, this is a highly, highly charged issue. Important to note right at the top, though, the majority of Americans and most lawmakers in the Congress are against the cloning of human embryos to create a human being.
At issue is the cloning of human embryos, and using those embryonic stem cells for research purposes. Now, President Bush making it very, very clear he is against all forms of human cloning. That was his message that he took to the East Room just a little bit earlier. Gathered there, doctors, scientists, lawmakers, even some individuals, including a police officer, Steven McDonald, who was paralyzed in the line of duty.
The president making it very clear he believes that this is a moral and ethical issue. He is against creating life for the purposes of anything, including research. Here's what the president said a short time ago.
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GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Human cloning is deeply troubling to me and to most Americans. Life is a creation, not a commodity.
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WALLACE: And of course, a big part of the debate centers on where individuals think life begins. You are going to have some individuals in the Congress putting forward an alternative, allowing the use of cloning of human embryos -- again, to use those stem cells for research on diseases such as Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, even dealing with spinal cord injuries.
Now, the House of Representatives passed an outright ban last summer, basically making human cloning a crime. The president calling on the Senate to do the same. Joining with him were the Democratic and Republican cosponsors of that ban. They talked to reporters just a short time ago. They believe they have 29 cosponsors of that legislation. They think in total they have the support of about 40 senators.
Again, though, now you're going to have the president and individuals lobbying those undecided lawmakers. As you heard, Kyra, the president very clear he wants a ban on all forms of human cloning. The stage is set to see how the Senate responds -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: White House correspondent Kelly Wallace. Thank you so much.
For more now from the latest on the battleground in the cloning controversy, let's go to Capitol Hill. That's where we find our Congressional correspondent, Jonathan Karl. What's the take from there, Jon?
JONATHAN KARL, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, of course the only way to get the kind of comprehensive ban on cloning that the president wants is through Congressional action. And although the president got exactly what he wanted last year from the House of Representatives, which, by a wide margin, went along with, as Kelly said, with that outright ban on all forms of cloning, the situation here in the Senate is far less certain.
This morning the Senate Democratic leader, Tom Daschle, came out and made it very clear that, although he's against, like most people are, any kind of cloning of embryos for the sake of creating cloned human beings, he thinks the kind of ban the president wants is simply wrong.
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SEN. TOM DASCHLE (D-SD), MAJORITY LEADER: There is resolute, determined, universal opposition to cloning for creation of human beings. We differ strongly, however, in the need to allow science and research to cure disease, such as cancer, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and diabetes. That's where the fissure, that's where the break is, the chasm. We believe we need to continue that research.
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KARL: And this is not strictly a Democrat versus Republican issue. In fact, one prominent Republican, Arlen Specter, agrees with Tom Daschle and will be supporting a bill that would allow for a ban on the cloning of human beings for the sake of creating human beings, but allow that loophole that would allow therapeutic cloning for scientific research. That's Arlen Specter. We're also told that at least one other prominent Republican is likely to come out this week to agree with that position, the position of Senator Daschle.
But those on the other side of this agree with the president, that the only way to go with this is a full ban, and any kind of a partial ban is simply not satisfactory.
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SEN. SAM BROWNBACK (R), KANSAS: Those who support cloning in limited circumstances, however they might describe those circumstances, whether it's nuclear transplantation, therapeutic cloning, experimental cloning, therapeutic cellular transfer, or whatever the latest euphemism is, cloning is wrong, period.
Creating human life to destroy it is wrong, period. And allowing biotechnology companies to create human embryo farms for the purpose of harvesting human body parts is morally abhorrent.
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KARL: Now, as Kelly Wallace said, the president's remarks today, really the opening salvo in the debate here in the Senate. And Senator Daschle says he expects to bring this issue up sometime before Memorial Day. So, quite soon, sometime in the coming weeks, perhaps months, you will see this issue come to a fore right here in the United States Senate, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right, Jon Karl, thanks so much.
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