Kerry Pledges to Once Again Make America the Leader in Science; 48 Nobel Prize Winning Scientists Endorse Kerry for President 6/21/2004
From: Allison Dobson of John Kerry for President, 202-464-2800, Web site: http://www.johnkerry.com DENVER, June 21 -- Kicking off a week focused on his plan to make the American economy stronger at home through scientific discovery, technology and innovation, Democratic Presidential candidate John Kerry today pledged to lift up families and create new jobs by once again making America the world leader in science. While the Bush administration has politicized science, Kerry will put America back on the path of scientific excellence with a commitment to scientific research based on fact -- not ideology. Kerry was also endorsed in a letter Monday by 48 Nobel Prize winning scientists. The scientists issued a letter calling Kerry a "clear choice for America's next President" who will "restore science to its appropriate place in government and bring it back into the White House." (Text of the Letter and List of Scientists Below) With American families struggling in an economy that has failed to lift them up, scientific discovery has the potential to make us stronger at home by lowering health care costs, developing new technologies that will create good paying jobs and curing disease. However, to realize this potential and strengthen our country, Kerry stressed today that we need a President committed to science and encouraging innovation. "The American people deserve a President who understands that when America invests in science and technology and higher education, we can build a new and stronger economy for the 21st century," Kerry said. For three years, the Bush administration has squandered America's leadership in the world, putting politics before science and doing nothing to create jobs while our workers fall further behind. The administration has proposed cuts for scientific research and grossly distorted and politicized science on issues from mercury pollution to stem cell research. This approach not only limits the research that our scientists are doing today, it undermines important discoveries of tomorrow and threatens America's critical edge in innovation. Kerry's plan will reverse this course by restoring America's scientific leadership, helping find new cures, cutting health care costs and developing new technologies that will create good jobs. The Kerry plan begins by embracing America's tradition of looking forward. It is important to keep America's edge on science and technology to assure America is economically competitive. Kerry will invest in our nation's scientific research with the aim of making new discoveries to help cure diseases and keep America's economy on the cutting edge. "We need a president who will once again embrace our tradition of looking toward the future and new discoveries with hope based on scientific facts, not fear," Kerry said. Second, Kerry will embrace empirical science based on facts, not ideology. He will turn to our nation's scientific leaders and make decisions based on expert advice. As president, Kerry will also overturn the ban on federal funding of research on new stem cell lines, and he will allow doctors and scientists to explore their full potential with the appropriate ethical oversight. "If we pursue the limitless potential of our science -- and trust that we can use it wisely -- we will save millions of lives and earn the gratitude of future generations," Kerry said. "We have the potential to do so much good while at the same time meeting some very practical challengeslowering health care costs and creating new jobs. It's about investing in the future of our country. I won't let ideology and fear stand in our way." In the coming days, Kerry will continue to lay out his plan to make us stronger at home through science, technology and innovation, including investing in new technologies and preparing our workforce for the jobs of the future. --- Following is the text of a letter from Nobel Prize winning scientists, endorsing John Kerry for President: ENDORSEMENT LETTER An Open Letter to the American People June 21, 2004 Presidential elections present us with choices about our nation's future. We support John Kerry for President and urge you to join us. The prosperity, health, environment, and security of Americans depend on Presidential leadership to sustain our vibrant science and technology; to encourage education at home and attract talented scientists and engineers from abroad; and to nurture a business environment that transforms new knowledge into new opportunities for creating quality jobs and reaching shared goals. President Bush and his administration are compromising our future on each of these counts. By reducing funding for scientific research, they are undermining the foundation of America's future. By setting unwarranted restrictions on stem cell research, they are impeding medical advances. By employing inappropriate immigration practices, they are turning critical scientific talent away from our shores. And by ignoring scientific consensus on critical issues such as global warming, they are threatening the earth's future. Unlike previous administrations, Republican and Democratic alike, the Bush administration has ignored unbiased scientific advice in the policy-making that is so important to our collective welfare. John Kerry will change all this. He will support strong investments in science and technology as he restores fiscal responsibility. He will stimulate the development and deployment of technologies to meet our economic, energy, environmental, health, and security needs. He will recreate an America that provides opportunity to all at home or abroad who can help us make progress together. John Kerry will restore science to its appropriate place in government and bring it back into the White House. He is the clear choice for America's next President. Signed, Peter Agre, Chemistry, 2003 David H. Hubel, Medicine, 1981 Sidney Altman, Chemistry, 1989 Louis Ignarro, Medicine, 1998 Philip W. Anderson, Physics, 1977 Eric Kandel, Medicine, 2000 David Baltimore, Medicine, 1975 Walter Kohn, Chemistry, 1998 Baruj Benacerraf, Medicine, 1980 Arthur Kornberg, Medicine, 1959 Paul Berg, Chemistry, 1980 Leon M. Lederman, Physics, 1988 Hans A. Bethe, Physics, 1967 T. D. Lee, Physics, 1957 Gunter Blobel, Medicine, 1999 David M. Lee, Physics, 1996 N. Bloembergen, Physics, 1981 William N. Lipscomb, Chemistry, 1976 Leon N. Cooper, Physics, 1972 Roderick MacKinnon, Chemistry, 2003 James W. Cronin, Physics, 1980 Mario J. Molina, Chemistry, 1995 Johann Deisenhofer, Chemistry, 1988 Joseph E. Murray, Medicine, 1990 John B. Fenn, Chemistry, 2002 Douglas D. Osheroff, Physics, 1996 Val Fitch, Physics, 1980 George Palade, Medicine, 1974 Jerome I. Friedman, Physics, 1990 Arno Penzias, Physics, 1978 Walter Gilbert, Chemistry, 1980 Martin L. Perl, Physics, 1995 Alfred G. Gilman, Medicine, 1994 Norman F. Ramsey, Physics, 1989 Donald A. Glaser, Physics, 1960 Burton Richter, Physics, 1976 Sheldon L. Glashow, Physics, 1979 Joseph H. Taylor, Physics, 1993 Joseph Goldstein, Medicine, 1985 E. Donnall Thomas, Medicine, 1990 Roger Guillemin, Medicine, 1977 Charles H. Townes, Physics, 1964 Dudley Herschbach, Chemistry, 1986 Harold Varmus, Medicine, 1989 Roald Hoffmann, Chemistry, 1981 Eric Wieschaus, Medicine, 1995 H. Robert Horvitz, Medicine, 2002 Robert W. Wilson, Physics, 1978 The views of expressed in this letter represent those of the signers acting as individual citizens. They do not necessarily represent the views of the institutions with which they are affiliated. --- Paid for by John Kerry for President, Inc. |