President's panel skewed facts, 2 scientists say

Two scientists from President Bush's top advisory board on cutting-edge medical research yesterday published a detailed criticism of the board's own reports, and said the board skewed scientific facts in service of a political and ideological cause.

The authors of the critique published yesterday were two of only three full-time scientists on the council. They said the council's last report, "Monitoring Stem Cell Research," did not make clear that a wave of recent scientific research has cast doubt on the potential of adult stem cells -- a type of cell that Bush held up as a promising alternative when he announced his restrictions on the use of embryonic cells.

Although the council is supposed to provide impartial advice to Bush, one of the scientists said yesterday that its reports seemed to be driven by a preexisting agenda and did not accurately portray the scientific underpinnings of the ethical issues the council was grappling with.

Their critique was published online yesterday by the journal PLoS Biology. It adds to growing criticism from scientists that the Bush administration is manipulating the scientific advice it receives on politically charged issues, ranging from climate change to mercury contamination. Last month, the Union of Concerned Scientists issued a statement, signed by more that 60 Nobel laureates, that alleged the administration has manipulated scientific findings to a degree unprecedented in recent White House history.