Orrin Hatch: “I rise to oppose amendment No. 847 offered by my friend from Kansas, Senator Brownback. This amendment purports to…”

“I rise to oppose amendment No. 847 offered by my friend from Kansas, Senator Brownback. This amendment purports to establish safeguards with respect to medical treatments that encompass therapies directed at genetic defects. The amendment would impose criminal sanctions, including imprisonment of up to 10 years, on those who violate the restrictions on modifying the human genetic structure. Not only is this the wrong time to consider this amendment, it is also the wrong piece of legislation on which to consider this amendment. In all candor, I must tell my colleagues that in my view, based on my preliminary reading of this amendment, I greatly doubt there will ever be a right time for this proposal. I have no doubt that this amendment is well-intentioned. I have worked with Senator Brownback many times in the past on many issues, including many important right-to-life issues, such as outlawing partial birth abortion. Both he and I are proud to call ourselves pro-life Senators. But, as my colleagues are aware, Senator Brownback and I happen to disagree on the issue of federal funding for embryonic stem cell research. I understand and completely respect his views on this issue. In a nutshell, the Brownback amendment attempts to regulate genetic research. But I am afraid that it might regulate this critical avenue of research right out of existence. This is an exceedingly complex and dynamic field of science.”