Without Washington’s billions—about 126.5 of them this year—America’s university laboratories and a vast network of federal research centers would wither, if not collapse. Science in the United States runs on tax dollars, and if the dollars decline, so too will the nation’s national security, health, and prosperity.
Despite that, science rarely becomes part of big-league politicking. This year—with such blockbuster issues as jobs, Iraq, domestic security, taxes, and the rising cost of health care—is different only to the extent that President George W. Bush’s stem cell research policies have made headlines.
Examining the positions of both Bush and challenger John Kerry might appear to be easy because both have track records. But feints, winks, and oratorical extravagance are the daily tactics of politics. What’s said and seen do not necessarily become policy and lawmaking. A president can loudly support a big research project, then fail to push it in Congress. ...
