On Capitol Hill, the Senate voted Tuesday to expand federal support of medical research using embryonic stem cells. President Bush has vowed to veto the legislation. The bill received the support of 63 Senators, short of the two-thirds majority it would take to override the veto. So far during his presidency President Bush has not vetoed any legislation. Opponents of stem cell research claim that conducting medical experiments on fertilized human eggs amounts to ending human lives. On Tuesday Democratic Senator John Kerry urged Bush not to veto the legislation.

• Sen. John Kerry: “Americans have been presented with a false choice–between the sanctity of human life and the scientific knowledge that can save it The President’s veto rests on a false assumption that we have to choose between our dreams and our principles. I believe Mr. President that we can have both and we can protect both.”

Pennsylvania Republican Rick Santorum voted against research on stem cells saying it was the equivalent of taking a human life.

• Sen. Rick Santorum: “Every life whether in a suspended life in an IVF clinic, or standing on the floor of the U.S. Senate attempting to defend and protect those suspended lives–every life has meaning. Every life deserves protection under our Constitution.”

On Tuesday reporters asked Press Secretary Tony Snow why President Bush opposed the bill. Snow responded, “The simple answer is he thinks murder is wrong.”