KMPH Fox 26 Central San Joaquin Valley News Source in Fresno, California Entertainment, News, Sports and Weather | Valley Stem Cell Debate

Valley Stem Cell Debate

By: Clint Olivier and Kyra J. Neyland

Fresno, Ca.-Both sides agree that coming up with cures for some of the world's most deadly diseases is a worthy activity for scientists to dedicate their time to, but whether to use embryonic stem cells is where the sharp disagreement begins.

From his office in Central Fresno, Right to Life's Josh Brahm does a weekly podcast people can tune in to over the Internet.

Brahm is reacting to President Obama's reversal of a 2001 Bush Administration directive, allowing federal money to again fund broader research on embryonic stem cells.

"So the question is, why do we want to spend taxpayer dollars in an economically bad time on research that not only kills embryos, but is probably not going to come up with any cures," Brahm said.

Brahm supported President George W. Bush when he limited the use of taxpayer money out of concern about the destruction of human embryos. But he has bad things to say about the current president's record on human life.

"This stem cell thing doesn't really come as a surprise to me. He's just following the marching orders that he's been given by everyone on the far radical left, even though the majority of America doesn't necessarily agree with this," Brahm said.

But across town at Fresno State, Dr. Jason Bush supervises researchers looking for the cure for cancer.

Bush praises the president, saying Obama is taking politics out of the stem cell debate.

"He's giving back the decision-making and the policy-making for scientific policy, and leaving that to the scientists," he said.

Dr. Bush says the Cal State system of universities wants to instruct students on the intricacies of stem cell research, in an effort to put well prepared researchers out into the workforce in coming years.

He says Fresno State students will begin research on mouse embryonic stem cells, and graduate to human cells.

"We'll be using the approved, the federally approved stem cell lines. We are looking at within the next year," he said.

The president also says his order would not open the door to human cloning, which he called "profoundly wrong.''