Byron Dorgan: “all of us have great pride in being able to serve in this great body and the purpose of it is, of course, to be engaged…”

“all of us have great pride in being able to serve in this great body and the purpose of it is, of course, to be engaged in public policy debate, how to advance this country's interests. We come to this debate today on something that is very important, very controversial. This country's search in many areas-- social justice, science, and so many areas of our lives--is a search that never ends. We have split the atom. We have spliced genes. We did the human genome project, developed the owner's manual for the human body. We invented plastics and radar and silicon chips, cured polio, cured smallpox, built airplanes and learned to fly them, and built rockets and walked on the moon; we invented the telephone, the computer, and the television. It is pretty unbelievable, but this country is hardly out of breath. We continue to inquire, continue to search, and continue to ask questions. Those questions, especially in science, are, in some cases, difficult questions. We will have three pieces of legislation we will vote on tomorrow dealing with stem cell research. One piece of legislation prevents something that is not being done. I will not have any problem supporting that; preventing something that is not being done is not posing any difficulty for me. The second piece of legislation authorizes that which is already authorized. I have no difficulty with that vote either. I will be happy to support that.…”