May 20 (Bloomberg) -- President George W. Bush said he would veto legislation under consideration in the House of Representatives that would ease restrictions on federal funding for embryonic stem cell research.

``I have made very clear to the Congress that the use of taxpayer money to promote science that destroys life in order to save life, I am against that,'' Bush told reporters in at the White House before meeting with Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen. ``If the bill does that, I will veto it.''

Bush has never vetoed a bill passed by Congress, and it's not clear this one will ever reach his desk. The Senate has yet to agree to consider the legislation.

Embryonic stem cells are like blank slates that have the potential to mature into any type of cell or tissue. Researchers say the cells, which scientists first began to isolate and grow in 1998, may lead one day to cures for conditions including spinal cord injuries, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease, and diabetes.

The U.S. House will vote as early as next week on two competing bills governing stem-cell research. One proposal, written by Delaware Republican Mike Castle, would remove the limit on the number of embryonic stem-cell lines eligible for federal research funding. The measure has 202 co-sponsors; passage requires 218 votes.

Another measure, by New Jersey Republican Christopher Smith, would encourage research on adult stem cells, which researchers consider less useful than embryonic stem cells. Smith's measure has 46 co-sponsors.

Counting Votes

Republicans outnumber Democrats in the House, 232-202, with one independent.

The House leadership, particularly Speaker Dennis Hastert of Illinois and House Majority Leader Tom DeLay of Texas, both oppose Castle's bill, yet they have agreed to allow a vote in part because public support is growing for expanded stem cell research.

A poll released by Castle and other lawmakers last week found 66 percent of 1,300 voters in 13 Republican districts favored stem-cell research.

Should the bill pass Congress and be vetoed by Bush, analysts say that there is enough support in the House to over- ride Bush's veto -- but not in the Senate.

Under congressional rules, a two-thirds majority in each chamber would have to vote to undo Bush's veto. That comes to 290 House members and 67 senators.

`Senate in Question'

``Should it come to that, there are quite likely enough votes in the House, but the Senate is a different question,'' said Jennifer Duffy, who analyzes Congress for the nonpartisan Cook Political Report. ``Even if a veto override gets the support of five or seven moderate Republicans, that might not even get the total to 60.''

Norm Ornstein, a congressional scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, said that while the House is usually considered more ``pro-life'' than the Senate, ``this issue cuts differently.''

``The reason for that is that there has been an influx lately in the Senate of people who are ardently pro-life, like Tom Coburn of Oklahoma and Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania,'' Ornstein said. ``That will make it very difficult to override a veto.''

Danger of Backlash

The danger for Republicans and opponents of embryonic stem cell research is a public backlash, Ornstein said,

``There are strong majorities of Americans out there who want embryonic stem cell research, and there is also evidence that the American people think Congress is out of touch,'' Ornstein said. ``This could turn into a case of, `There they go again.'''

An NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll published yesterday showed that 65% of those questioned believe Congress does not share their values.

Leaders of the Senate haven't agreed to schedule a vote on stem-cell legislation. Senators Arlen Specter, a Pennsylvania Republican, and Tom Harkin, an Iowa Democrat, wrote a bill identical to Castle's that has 32 co-sponsors out of 100 senators. A Senate version of Smith's bill, written by Utah Republican Orrin Hatch, has seven co-sponsors.

Funding Limited

The Biotechnology Industry Organization, the largest trade group for biotech companies including stem-cell researcher Geron, supports Castle's bill, as do many universities and scientists. BIO President Jim Greenwood, a former Republican representative from Pennsylvania, said May 4 that he was ``optimistic'' the House would pass a stem-cell bill.

Companies that may benefit from more support for embryonic stem-cell study include Geron Corp. in Menlo Park, California, and closely held Advanced Cell Technology Inc. in Worcester, Massachusetts.

Bush in 2001 limited federal funding to experiments using existing embryonic cell lines, citing ethical concerns because harvesting new stem cells requires the destruction of embryos.

Ron Reagan, the son of former Republican President Ronald Reagan, last year called on Bush to ease the funding restrictions after his father died last June from complications of Alzheimer's disease, a degenerative brain illness.

Almost all of the existing material derived from human embryos, including the cells that qualify for U.S. government funding, has been contaminated by mouse proteins that would probably make humans reject therapies, according to a study published in January in the journal Nature Medicine. The finding added to concerns among scientists about the utility of the stem cell lines that are eligible for U.S. funding.

To contact the reporter on this story: Richard Keil in Washington at dkeil@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: May 20, 2005 13:35 EDT