Dianne Feinstein: “this is a rush to judgment on one of the most fundamental issues of the 20th century. Mr. President, this is not…”

“this is a rush to judgment on one of the most fundamental issues of the 20th century. Mr. President, this is not renaming National Airport Ronald Reagan Airport. Mr. President, I submit respectfully to the distinguished Senators on the other side of the aisle that this is a major debate that has scientific implications, moral implications and ethical implications. It is a debate, also, that involves one of the most difficult areas of science involving human genetics, with a vocabulary and a lexicon that is not understood by the great bulk of the American people and certainly not by many of us in the U.S. Senate. Both the Bond-Frist bill and the Feinstein-Kennedy bill dealing with the subject of human cloning were introduced less than 48 hours ago--48 hours. No hearings have been held on either bill, no floor debate has been held on either bill. The medical community, the research community, patients with currently incurable diseases whose cure we might affect by both of these bills have barely read the bills, much less analyzed them. As a matter of fact, the letters are now beginning to pour in.”