The worst excuse for a veto

Today, as expected, President Bush vetoed a bill that would have granted funding for embryonic stem cell research.  Because Karl Rove is betting that single-issue conservative voters are more likely than affluent conservatives to show up on election day, the President reached a calculated election year conclusion that it was more convenient under these circumstances to pander to the far-right.

During his news conference where he officially issued the first veto of his presidency, Bush recited the usual conservative talking points, such as this one:

"My administration has made available more than $90 million for research on these lines."

This is the rhetorical equivalent of Al Gore saying that he invented the internet.  The Republicans say that this Administration has given more money to stem cell research than any other presidency in American history.  If you hear any of your Republicans friends say that, don't let them get away with it!  Of course Bush has funded the most.  Why?  This technology was not available during the Clinton years. Bush is really the first President to face any sizable amount of pressure to fund stem cell research.  It's like John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson saying that they funded the space program more than any of their predecessors.  Of course they did!  Do you think Theodore Roosevelt made a campaign promise to fly someone to the moon?  I don't think so.  The science wasn't there.  Anytime you hear a president or governor claim to fund a certain kind of scientific research more than any of their predecessors, you first have to look at whether that type of science was even available before.  If it wasn't, then credit cannot be claimed.

But what got me the most from this press conference was why Bush said he vetoed the bill:

"Under this policy, 21 human embryonic stem cell lines are currently in use in research that is eligible for federal funding."

I am sorry, but that was the worst excuse ever.  In other words, we're doing "x" much, and that's good enough.  Well tell that to all the patients that could possibly gain from embryonic stem cell funding.  Republicans say it's false hope.  I say that some hope is a whole lot better than no hope coupled with restraint.

Back again to this quote, because this is really important.  It reminds me of what the Pentagon said about Iraq last year:

"Overall, 14 of Iraq's 18 provinces are relatively peaceful and stable, and more than 30,000 new businesses have set up shop."

On the outside, from this quote you might think that we're moving in the right direction.  But when you really cut through all the spin, you find out that the four provinces that aren't stable hold more than 70% of the Iraqi population.

So once again, on the stem cell issue, like on Iraq, the Administration clearly believes that throwing a bunch of deceptive numbers around to confuse people is sound leadership.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Other blogs writing about this issue: Everything Between, The Carpetbagger Report, The Disgruntled Chemist, Vox Populi, Ariel, Beware of the Dogma, Outisde the Beltway, Putz of the Day, Kewpie, A Patriot's Weapon of Choice, Whosgobel, I think this is Important, Various Musings by Me, Short but not too Sweet, The Power Liberal.