Presidential Campaigns Call for Big Boosts to Research Funding

At the AAAS annual meeting this past week, representatives from the Clinton and Obama campaign presented their candidates' views on science policy.

Representatives of the two remaining major Democratic candidates for U.S. president both endorsed big budget increases for federally funded basic scientific research at a debate before hundreds of scientists today, with Senator Hillary Clinton's (D–NY) team offering decidedly more specifics on their plans.

Still, what was glaring here is that not a single Republican candidate sent a representative.

The presumptive Republican candidate, Senator John McCain (R–AZ), was invited but sent regrets, said Albert Teich of AAAS. "They apparently would have liked to come." Representative Ron Paul (R–TX) and former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee did not respond to AAAS's invitation.

Take that however you wish.

Zz.