Ex-surgeon general says he was muzzled by Bush administration

WASHINGTON — President Bush's first surgeon general testified Tuesday that his speeches were censored to match administration political positions and that he was prevented from giving the public accurate scientific information on issues such as stem-cell research and teen-pregnancy prevention.

"Anything that doesn't fit into the political appointees' ideological, theological or political agenda is ignored, marginalized or simply buried," Dr. Richard Carmona, surgeon general from 2002 to 2006, told a congressional committee. "The job of surgeon general is to be the doctor of the nation, not the doctor of a political party."

Early in the administration, when the issue of federal funding for stem-cell research arose, Carmona said, he thought he could play an educational role by discussing the latest scientific research. Instead, he was told to "stand down" because the White House already had decided to limit stem-cell studies. He said administration appointees who reviewed his speech texts deleted references to stem cells.

Carmona said he also ran afoul of politics on teen-pregnancy prevention. While the administration emphasizes abstinence from sex, Carmona said he believes a variety of approaches are needed, including contraception for teens who are sexually active.

The administration "did not want to hear the science ... but wanted to preach abstinence, which I felt was scientifically incorrect," Carmona testified.

Carmona's remarks were the latest in a series of complaints from government scientists about what they say are administration efforts to control — and sometimes distort — scientific evidence in order to support policy decisions.

NASA scientists have complained, for example, of pressure to tone down warnings about global warming. EPA officials have complained that technical information on power plant emissions and oil drilling have been ignored.

In the case of the surgeon general, Carmona told the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, "the nation's doctor has been marginalized and relegated to a position with no independent budget, and with supervisors who are political appointees with partisan agendas."

White House spokesman Tony Fratto said, "Dr. Carmona was given the authority and had the obligation to be the leading voice for the health of all Americans. It's disappointing to us if he failed to use his position to the fullest extent in advocating for policies he thought were in the best interests of the nation. We believe Dr. Carmona received the support necessary to carry out his mission."

Carmona, a trauma surgeon from Arizona, served his four-year term as surgeon general and was not reappointed. The House hearing came two days before a Senate panel meets to consider the nomination of Carmona's replacement, Kentucky cardiologist Dr. James Holsinger.

Carmona testified alongside former surgeons general C. Everett Koop and David Satcher, who served in the Reagan and Clinton administrations respectively. They also told the committee that they had faced political interference, particularly on morally charged issues such as sexuality or drug use.

Carmona said their testimony showed that political interference was "a systemic problem," but he also said several former surgeons general told him they had never seen it rise to the levels he encountered.