WASHINGTON — Hawai'i's two Democratic senators voted with the Senate majority yesterday to overturn the president's limits on embryonic stem cell research, setting the stage for the first veto fight of the Bush administration.

"I support stem cell research and I have been for it all along," said Sen. Daniel K. Inouye. "With greater funding for medical research using embryonic stem cells, we will be better poised to make breakthroughs that lead to the cure for Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and other diseases."

The vote was 63-37 to allow federally funded researchers to conduct medical research on surplus embryos from fertility clinics. The bipartisan vote was enough to move the bill to the president's desk for signature but fell short of the two-thirds majority needed to override the expected presidential veto.

Sen. Daniel Akaka said the country cannot afford to limit scientific research that could improve the lives of people now suffering from a wide range of diseases, including diabetes, autism and heart disease.

"The president's stem cell policy prevents researchers from moving ahead on an area of research that is very promising," he said. "We need to pass this legislation to help move research forward that could alleviate the pain and suffering of individuals."

The Senate also unanimously approved two side measures. One bill would ban the nonexistent practice of "fetal farming," or harvesting embryos from women's uteruses for research purposes. The other calls upon the National Institutes of Health to focus on research into cures from adult stem cells — something the NIH already is doing.

Hawai'i Democrats Neil Abercrombie and Ed Case were among the House members who passed the main embryonic stem cell bill last year.

The House approved the main embryonic stem cell bill last year 238-194, but split yesterday on the two side bills. House lawmakers passed the fetal farming bill and declined to bring the adult stem cell bill to a vote.

The vote highlighted the ideological divide among Republicans.

"The president believes strongly that for the purpose of research, it's inappropriate for the federal government to finance something that many people consider murder," White House spokesman Tony Snow said yesterday. "He's one of them."

But Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., is battling cancer and like many other sick and injured Americans hopes embryonic stem cell research will yield a cure. He described a conversation he had with his conservative colleague, Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan.

"He said his concern was the question of when life began," Specter said. "I told him my concern was when life ended."

Reach Dennis Camire at dcamire@gns.gannett.com.