WASHINGTON, Nov. 25 (UPI) -- U.S. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, says he believes the next Congress will pass legislation expanding stem cell research, over a presidential veto if necessary.
Hatch has broken with President George W. Bush on the issue. Bush vetoed a bill passed by Congress last year, authorizing federally funded stem cell research.
"I think we have the votes in the Senate to override a veto, and we may have them in the House. I think we can get there," Hatch told the Salt Lake City Tribune. "According to some, we're only a couple votes short, and I think I know where those votes are."
Hatch hopes to put together a compromise that would avoid a veto.
Bush originally said federal funding would only be made available for research involving existing stem cell lines. Hatch supports using stem cells derived from embryos produced for fertility treatments, which would be discarded anyway.
