Bush Promotes Funding
for Religious Groups
By AP from the
washingtonpost.com on the Web, June 21, 2005
WASHINGTON -- President Bush
on Tuesday told the Southern Baptist Convention a compassionate society would
rely more on religious groups to provide social services and oppose expanded
embryonic stem cell research.
Bush renewed his call for Congress to pass a law that would allow religious
groups with federal contracts to consider questions of faith when making
employment decisions. With such legislation long stalled, the president
has bypassed Congress and made more money available to such groups through
executive orders and regulations.
"Congress needs to pass charitable choice legislation to forever guarantee equal
treatment for our faith-based organizations when they compete for federal
funds," Bush told the Baptists meeting in Nashville, Tenn., via satellite.
Quoting the hymn "Great Is Thy Faithfulness," Bush said, "Thy compassions, they
fail not."
On "culture of life" issues such as stem cells, the president said, "A
compassionate society protects and defends its most vulnerable members at every
stage of life."
Bush opposes a House-passed bill that would lift his 2001 restrictions on public
funding for research on newly developed embryonic stem cell lines. The
Senate is now considering the matter.
Bush also reiterated his intention to nominate conservative jurists to the
federal bench.
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