Virginia (Stem Cell) – what-when-how

THE HINXTON GROUPAN international stem cell policy consortiumconsiders the Commonwealth of Virginia a permissive compromise state, one in which legislation is neither especially restrictive nor supportive of human embryonic stem cell research and related endeavors.

Politically, the commonwealth is a swing state of growing importance to national elections and issues. Many of the conservative Dixiecrats of rural Virginia were swayed to the Republican Party by Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagans southern strategy (Virginia was one of the few southern states Nixon carried in 1960), but an increasing number of independent voters have become dissatisfied with the Republicans in the 21st century. Electoral reform has recently elevated the power of the prominent third parties like the Libertarian Party of Virginia, and both northern Virginia (often considered culturally distinct from the rest of the state by Virginia natives) and the prolabor Black Belt region of southwest Virginia (named for the coal mines) are significantly more liberal than the rest of the state. Virginia governors are only allowed to serve one term, which sometimes allows for faster political change. The current governor, Tim Kaine, is the first Democrat to serve after years of Republican governors; the legislature is predominantly Republican after an equally long period of Democratic legislative dominance.

The junior senator from Virginia, Jim Webb, was elected during the 2006 midterm elections. A Democrat and Vietnam War veteran who served as secretary of the Navy under the Reagan administration, Webb had worked as an author and filmmaker after resigning in 1988 over his refusal to reduce the size of the Navys fleet. He has been critical of the war in Iraq and of President George W. Bush and was drafted into the 2006 election by a grassroots internet movement. The combination of his conservative fiscal policy, opposition to gun control, and military background (he continues to support the Vietnam War as a just war) with his Democratic allegiance is reminiscent of the classic Dixiecrat. It is widely speculated that hell be considered as a running mate in the 2008 presidential election.

Interestingly, Virginias senior senatorwho has announced he is not seeking reelection, and whose term will end in 2009is also a former secretary of the Navy. A Korean War veteran and lawyer, John Warner served in that position under Richard Nixon and led a high-profile life that included marriages to Elizabeth Taylor and banking heiress Catherine Mellon, as well as dating journalist Barbara Walters. He has served in the Senate since 1979 and is one of the most moderate southern Republicans. Though a centrist on the abortion issuehe is pro-choice but supports many of the heavy restrictions the pro-life lobby sponsorshe has consistently supported human embryonic stem cell research.

Eight of Virginias 11 seats in the House of Representatives are held by Republicans. The 5th District representative, Virgil Goode, was elected as a Democrat in 1996 but ran as an independent in 2000 after voting for three of the four articles of impeachment against President Bill Clinton. In 2002, he joined the Republican Party as the first

Republican to serve his district since Reconstruction. It may go without saying that his politics do not map well to national party platforms, but he is a social and fiscal conservative, supporting many of the same issues as the Religious Right.

Representative Tom Davis serves the 11th District, a northern Virginia district near Washington, D.C. Hes a fairly moderate, centrist Republican who has consistently supported stem cell research, including embryonic stem cell research, but who otherwise is rarely far from the party line.

Virginia is also home to the Christopher Reeve Stem Cell Research Fund (not to be confused with the New Jersey-based Christopher Reeve Foundation), which was established in late February 2005, with little legislative discussion. The fund provides money for adultnot embryonicstem cell research. Legislation was introduced in 2007 to allow the fund to subsidize human embryonic stem cell research, but the bill died in committee after being referred to the Committee on Education.

Virginia state law bans cloning for reproductive purposes but not therapeutic cloning (though it does not explicitly permit it, either). The law pertaining to the fund emphasizes stem cell research that seeks to find a cure or treatment for spinal cord injuries, diabetes, cancer, heart disease, and neurological disorders, but does not limit research to those areas.

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Virginia (Stem Cell) - what-when-how