WASHINGTON, DC, Aug. 23 (CWNews.com) - The Clinton administration on Wednesday announced it would use taxpayer dollars to fund research on human stem cells taken from embryonic unborn children, eliciting protests from pro-life groups.

    The National Institutes for Health (NIH) said it would employ strict guidelines to avoid violating a law banning the use of embryos in government-funded research. Under the rules, the unborn children, left over from in vitro fertilization procedures, would be killed by privately-funded researchers who would then pass on the cells to government scientists. Former Republican presidential candidate Gary Bauer called the plan an attempt to "side-step Congress' opposition to this procedure." He called on Congress to close this loophole before the final passage of budget bills in September.

    Other pro-life advocates criticized the new research guidelines as unnecessary. "These guidelines do not represent a step forward," said Judie Brown of American Life League. "They are an attack against the humanity of the individual human person. Millions of human lives will be destroyed by this false science."

    Stem cells are master cells in the human body, often found in developing unborn children but also found in adults, that can develop into virtually any cell in the body. Scientists claim research could lead to cures for Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's, diabetes, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injuries, and a host of other ailments.

    President Bill Clinton urged the public to consider the "potentially staggering benefits" of stem-cell research and said the guidelines included "rigorous scientific standards" for researchers. "I think we cannot walk away from the potential to save lives and improve lives, to help people literally get up and walk, to do all kinds of things we could never have imagined, as long as we meet rigorous, ethical standards," Clinton told reporters

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