Monday, February 05, 2007

National Republican Pro-Life Group Contests Romney's Claims

Mitt Romney is running for the Republican nomination for President. It doesn't appear he'll be able to fool the real pro-life Republicans much longer. Killing human embryos for research and aborting babies resulting from rape or incest are both anathema to the true pro-lifer. The Republican National Coalition for Life reminds us that "The Republican Party was founded on the principle that no human being should be considered the property of another." And that includes babies.

From their "FaxNotes" (2-3-07):

MITT ROMNEY SUPPORTS KILLING HUMAN EMBRYOS FOR RESEARCH

Despite his recent professed conversion to the pro-life side of the debate after more than thirty years of supporting Roe v. Wade and legal abortion, when it comes to respect for the sanctity of human life, Mitt Romney is on the wrong side.

Governor Romney’s claim that he is “pro-life” is belied by his position on the “use” of human embryos for research purposes. We know that every one of us started life as an embryo. An embryois a human organism. An embryo is a human being at the earliest stage ofdevelopment. As such, human embryos deserve respect and protection under the law. They are denied that respect and protection in the United States of America. That is because it is legal to kill them and use their stem cells for scientific experiments, as long as it is done with private money.

It is a practice that ought to be banned in this country, as it has been in others. Instead, all that has been done on their behalf is to deny the expenditure offederal tax dollars for embryonic stem cell research (ESCR), except for the stem cell lines taken from embryos killed prior to August 9, 2001, a date chosen by President Bush in a Solomon-like compromise with the biotech industry which supports ESCR and those who warn of the ethical and moral implications of killing and using human beings in pursuit of some potential--but very likely unachievable--benefit to others.

Governor Romney, who has established an exploratory committee for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008, says he is now “pro-life”after more than thirty years of staunch support for Roe v. Wade. How can he make that claim when, on the one hand he says he opposes creating human embryos for research purposes (cloning), yet, on the other hand he says he supports using human embryos created for another purpose, that of in vitro fertilization? It’s a distinction without a difference!
He sanctions the killing of embryos “left over” from IVF treatments “provided that those embryos are obtained after a rigorous parental consent process that includesadoption as an alternative.”

Mitt Romney’s position on embryonic stem cell research is not pro-life, and no one should say that it is. The embryos engendered through IVF are the children of the couples involved. Even though they can only be seen under a microscope, should their parents be allowed to have them killed? The answer to that would be YES if your views have been molded by 34 years ofthe effects of Roe v. Wade.
In addition, Mitt Romney justifies abortion for babies conceived through rape or incest. That is not a pro-life position. It is a pro-abortion-choice position that is held by Senator John McCain, another 2008 hopeful who also supports ESCR. The third candidate listed by the media as a “top-tier” contender for the nomination is former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, a strong proponent of Roe and supporter of abortion on demand.

Pro-life voters should look elsewhere for a candidate to support. Never forget that you were once an embryo!