Governor Romney had an excellent piece in the National Review Online today on an approach to stem cell research that would avoid the ethical and political controversies associated with that research. Some excerpts and reaction:

"Late last week, two developments involving stem-cell research offered a sharp contrast between the great strengths of American biomedical science and the terrible weakness of Washington politics."

"First, on Wednesday, we learned that researchers in Massachusetts, building on prior accomplishments by colleagues in Japan, had managed to transform regular skin cells into the equivalent of embryonic stem cells in mice. Their work points to a way to produce cells with the qualities scientists value about embryonic stem cells — but without the need to create, harm, or destroy human embryos, and therefore without ethical or political controversy."

"But then, on Thursday, the Congress passed a bill that would for the first time use taxpayer dollars to encourage the destruction of embryos for research. Just as it is becoming increasingly clear that scientific ingenuity could offer a way around the divisive controversies of the stem-cell debate, congressional Democrats are working to stoke those very controversies. They have opted to exacerbate what they see as a political debate that works in their favor, rather than encourage a scientific solution that would work in America’s favor."

"Support for ethical biomedical research should be part of our collective identity as a noble society. Instead of turning the quest for cures into a partisan battle, Congress should embrace the exciting emerging lines of research that could meet the goals of all sides in the stem-cell debate. A bill to support just such a positive approach to stem cell research passed the Senate in April by a whopping margin of 70 to 28. But the House Democratic leadership, choosing politics over the prospect of consensus on science, appears to be unwilling even to allow a vote on that hopeful legislation."

"It is time to move beyond typical Washington politics, and offer support for stem-cell research techniques that bring science and ethics together to promote life, protect life, and save lives."

Nothing is more apparent from this article than that Romney is a leader. He is an intelligent and optimistic voice for the issues we care about. Just when others are attacking Romney and seeking to infect voter's minds with misinformation, Romney simply continues the good fight, laying out his approach and alternative to political positioning in government and in the primary election. Where others are simply content to run a negative campaign, Romney is innovating, looking for solutions, and seeking to promote the right position with information and ideas.