Protecting pocketbooks from embryo research

Missourians are fighting back against passage of a November ballot issue providing state tax dollars for research on human embryos.

Ed Martin of Missouri Roundtable for Life says the measure, which would result in killing tiny human beings, won passage with only a fraction-of-one-percent majority.

"It was passed after almost $35 million were spent by pro-cloning proponents to pass it -- and the opposition obviously was much less than that," he shares. Martin's organization has launched a petition drive to put the issue back on the ballot in 2010 in an effort to reverse the 2006 vote.

"It became clear that one of the impacts -- and a major one, at that -- was the creation of law and policy that made it possible for tax dollars to be used for human cloning as well as for abortion services actually," the activist explains.

Martin points out that someone wanting to start a business must go to banks for financing. But in this case, he adds, clone research businesses want taxpayers to hand them the money.

Missouri Roundtable for Life has also filed lawsuits to block $21 million in state funds from going to the research. One of those suits was dismissed last month.

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