Colorado Democrats Call on Republicans in Washington to Fight Bush Veto

Denver, Colorado - Yesterday, Rep. Diana DeGette and the rest of Colorado’s Democrats in Congress put the interests of the American people and sound science ahead of partisan politics by passing the bipartisan bill to promote life-saving stem cell research.

After years of having Republicans like President Bush and Tom Tancreado and Marilyn Musgrave play politics with the issue, the new Democratic Congress today voted to increase federal funding for stem cell research and expand the number of stem cell lines available for federally-funded research. In the process, they helped give hope to 100 million Americans affected by debilitating or life-threatening diseases and their families.

"Strong Democratic leaders like Diana DeGette, Ed Perlmutter, and Mark Udall took a stand for the American people by voting to expand federal funding for critical stem cell research," said Colorado Democratic Party Chair Pat Waak. "This bill offers hope for patients who suffer from debilitating ailments like Multiple Sclerosis, diabetes, spinal cord injuries and Alzheimer’s and their families.

"The American people went to the polls and demanded change last November, and one of the things they asked for was real leadership that put compassion and sound science ahead of partisanship. Now that the Democratic Congress has provided that leadership by passing this critical bill, I call on Republicans like Tom Tancredo, Marilyn Musgrave and Doug Lamborn to do the right thing and join Democrats in fighting President Bush’s efforts to veto this bill."