Partial Victory for Speaker Pelosi on Stem Cells

The allegedly Catholic leader of the "humans-have-inalienable-rights-when-we-say-they-do" party notched an incomplete win on increased federal funding for embryonic stem cell research today, offering a partial fulfillment of the third item on Speaker Pelosi's 100-hour agenda. The 253-174 vote passes the bill but falls 37 votes short of the 2/3 majority needed to ensure passage of the bill in the face of President Bush's promised veto.

In an associated item earlier in the week, Sen. Casey (D-PA), through a spokesman, announced that he would oppose the bill as well, which passed last year in the Senate by a less-than-2/3 majority of 63-37. I admit I entertained suspicion that Sen. Casey would in fact demonstrate pro-life sensibilities only when the votes were already in place to accomplish the will of the Democratic Party's paymasters, but it seems that there may be actual conviction left in the Casey political DNA. Credit where it's due to the freshman.

Now let's see if he can resist the tendency of Catholic Democrats "to grow in office" the way Gephardt, Dodd and the Kennedys did into a form more pleasing to Emily's List. Time will tell.