Stem Cell Caution

Support for stem cell research has become a cause célèbre among Democrats. Last year New Jersey Senator Jon Corzine made it a big part of his successful campaign for Governor. This year New York Attorney General Elliott Spitzer is proposing a $1 billion stem cell bond issue as part of his own gubernatorial campaign. In Missouri Democrat Claire McCaskill is spotlighting stem cell research in her effort to unseat Republican Senator Jim Talent. And this week marks the one year anniversary of the passage of Castle-DeGette, the House bill that expands federal funding for stem cell research. Senate Democrats are rallying to push for a vote as soon as possible on the Senate version of this bill.

I'm a life-long liberal Democrat, pro-choice on abortion and a supporter of innovative medical research. I believe that stem cell research holds promise, and that the Bush administration's policies are unnecessarily restrictive. Now stem cells appear to be giving Democrats a potent vote-getting wedge issue.

Why am I worried about this?

I'm worried because in their over-the-top enthusiasm for stem cell and cloning...