Dateline: 04/10/02

Declaring human life "a creation, not a commodity," President Bush today called for passage of a law banning all human cloning in the U.S., including the cloning of human embryos for medical research.

Speaking in the East Room of the White House, President Bush told a group of lawmakers, doctors, scientists, disabled persons and religious leaders that while our society stood at threshold of great breakthroughs in genetic medicine and treatment of many dreaded diseases, "Advances in new biotechnology must never come at the expense of human conscience." 

"As we seek what is possible, we must always ask what is right, and we must not forget that even the most noble ends do not justify any means," said Bush.

President Bush called on the Senate to pass the Human Cloning Prohibition Act of 2001 (S. 790), sponsored by Sens. Sam Brownback (R-Kansas) and Mary Landrieu (D-Louisiana). The bill would make all human cloning in the United States, including the cloning of embryos for research purposes, a federal crime. The House passed a similar bill in July of 2001. [See: House Passes Total Human Cloning Ban]

Bush asserted that the Brownback-Landrieu Cloning Prohibition act enjoys support, "across the political spectrum, liberals and conservatives support it, religious people and nonreligious people support it. Those who are pro-choice and those who are pro-life support the bill."

While most Senators oppose the cloning of complete human beings, many favor a law that would allow the process to proceed up to the point of creating embryonic human stem cells thought to be the key to developing advanced treatments for diseases like Alzheimer's, AIDS, cancer, diabetes and Parkinson's.

President Bush, however, stated that such a bill, while forbidding the birth of cloned child, would still result in the destruction of a potential human life and would be "virtually impossible to enforce."

"Once cloned embryos were available, implantation would take place. Even the tightest regulations and strict policing would not prevent or detect the birth of cloned babies." said President Bush.

In August 2001, President Bush ruled that federal funds could be used only for research on the 60 lines of stem cells known to exist at that time, and derived only from excess embryos discarded by fertility clinics. "This year for the first time, federal dollars will go towards supporting human embryonic stem cell research consistent with the ethical guidelines I announced last August," stated Bush. [See: President Bush's Decision on Stem Cell Research]

Bush also questioned the accuracy of research showing that stem cells from cloned human embryos would be free of the risk of rejection when implanted into genetically identical individuals. "[T]here is evidence, based on animal studies, that cells derived from cloned embryos may indeed be rejected," he said.

Calling himself "an incurable optimist about the future of our country," President Bush concluded his remarks by declaring,"I truly believe that we're going to bring hope and healing to countless lives across the country. And as we do, I will insist that we always maintain the highest of ethical standards."