Bush May Cast First Veto

Many of us have wondered why President Bush has skipped so many chances to use his veto power (McCain-Feingold comes to mind). Now it looks like he may finally get out the veto stamp, but on legislation favored by many key Republicans:

President Bush will likely cast the first veto of his presidency if the Senate, as expected, passes legislation to expand federal funding of embryonic stem-cell research, White House aide Karl Rove said today.

"The president is emphatic about this," Rove - Bush's top political advisor and architect of his 2000 and 2004 campaigns - said in a meeting with the editorial board of The Denver Post.

The U.S. House of Representatives has already passed the legislation, co-sponsored by Rep. Diana DeGette, D-Denver, and Rep. Mike Castle, R-Del. If the Senate approves the bill it would go to the president's desk.

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., who backs the bill, has said he will try to bring it up for a Senate vote soon.

"It is something we would, frankly, like to avoid," Rove said when asked if the White House would welcome, or dread, vetoing legislation passed by a Republican Congress, especially on so emotional an issue as embryonic stem cell research.

I doubt there are enough votes to overturn his veto, so it will likely stick. It's hard to say how this might effect the midterm elections. Though some folks are pretty passionate on both sides of the issue, I don't think there's an overwhelming groundswell of support for embryonic stem cell research.

And, at the same time this veto is pending, there seems to be a breakthrough of sorts in adult stem cell research.