The Elephant, the Donkey and stem cell research!

It's not always easy to predict who is going to vote for which candidate...even the polls tend to predict a trend that fails to materialize when the the big day comes. This special year where our close neighbours will decide on a new administration, it seems like reasearchers involved in embryonic stem cell science can only vote one way....the Donkey way! As mentionned by Obama himself, embryonic stem cell research could be funded again if he is elected. This is a different view from McCain's who (might have) changed his mind since the California primaries

Here is a sample of what they said recently according to the Science Debate 2008

OBAMA

"I strongly support expanding research on stem cells. I believe that the restrictions that President Bush has placed on funding of human embryonic stem cell research have handcuffed our scientists and hindered our ability to compete with other nations. As president, I will lift the current administration’s ban on federal funding of research on embryonic stem cell lines created after August 9, 2001 through executive order, and I will ensure that all research on stem cells is conducted ethically and with rigorous oversight"

MCCAIN

"While I support federal funding for embryonic stem cell research, I believe clear lines should be drawn that reflect a refusal to sacrifice moral values and ethical principles for the sake of scientific progress. Moreover, I believe that recent scientific breakthroughs raise the hope that one day this debate will be rendered academic. I also support funding for other research programs, including amniotic fluid and adult stem cell research which hold much scientific promise and do not involve the use of embryos. I oppose the intentional creation of human embryos for research purposes and I voted to ban the practice of “fetal farming,” making it a federal crime for researchers to use cells or fetal tissue from an embryo created for research purposes."

Here is what McCain said during the California primaries

"I believe that we need to fund this. This is a tough issue for those of us in the pro-life community. I would remind you that these stem cells are either going to be discarded or perpetually frozen.

We need to do what we can to relieve human suffering. It's a tough issue. I support federal funding."

Via: BioTechniques newsletter