Most disapprove ofembryonic cloning

August 25, 2000

Most Americans polled in a new survey said they oppose the cloning of
embryos for the purposes of medical research, even as the Clinton
administration approved guidelines for the federal funding of so-called
stem-cell research.

According to a new

Portrait of America survey, fully 64 percent of respondents said scientists have no right to clone human embryos for medical research, while just 25 percent said human embryonic cloning should be permitted only for the treatment of disease.

POA analysts said the nation was nearly evenly divided on the issue of cloning animals, such as sheep, cows and pigs — 41 percent said they supported that while 42 percent disagreed.

Overwhelmingly, however, 78 percent of respondents are against the cloning of human beings.

According to poll researchers, “younger adults are more willing to accept the cloning of human embryos for the treatment of diseases,” noting that fully 43 percent of persons between the ages of 18 and 29 support cloning human embryos for the purpose of treating disease.

Only 25 to 30 percent of all other age groups included in the survey support embryonic cloning.

“Although many researchers and medical writers say cloning will assist many forms of medical research, 73 percent of Americans shake their head at the idea of cloning, claiming it will impact society in a negative way,” POA said Thursday.

Also, 78 percent said scientists would likely continue to experiment on cloning human beings despite a government ban.

Rasmussen Research conducted the survey of 1,000 adults on Aug. 22. The margin of sampling error for the full sample is +/- 4 percentage points with a 95 percent level of confidence.

Earlier this week, the Clinton administration approved new guidelines allowing scientists to apply for and receive federal funding for use in embryonic and stem-cell research. Medical ethicists, pro-life activists and the Roman Catholic Church all have come out against the new guidelines, while supporters — including President Clinton — maintain that such research is necessary and would prove immensely beneficial in treating illnesses and disease.