Missouri pro-life groups united in their criticism of pro-cloning petition

From The Pathway-See the link for their whole story by Allen Palmeri

Virtually every conservative pro-life organization in Missouri is criticizing the pro-cloningpetition designed – if passed in November by voters – to amend Missouri’s constitution preventing therapeutic cloning and embryonic stem cell research from being banned.
...
Pam Fichter, president, Missouri Right to Life, called the petition “deceptive” ....“The statewide petition campaign by the deceptively named Missouri Coalition for Lifesaving Cures would make it illegal in Missouri to protect human life created in the laboratory, would remove protection from human embryos created through in vitro fertilization, and would make it very difficult to restrict taxpayer funds from supporting this lethal and unproven research,” Fichter said. “Missouri Right to Life urges all Missourians to oppose the statewide initiative and to support the real promise of adult stem-cell research.”
...
Meanwhile, Sam Lee, founder, Campaign Life Missouri and a veteran pro-life lobbyist, said ...
“We’re talking about a fake cloning ban." “We’re talking about a made-up definition for cloning, or attempting to clone a human being, which is not found in any medical textbook, embryology textbook or medical dictionary of the National Institutes of Health website.”
...
State Rep. Ed Emery, R-Lamar and a member of First Baptist Church of Lamar, criticized the petition with two op-ed articles denouncing cloning in the Joplin Independent, which is supporting the petition drive. In his Oct. 26 article, Emery announced that doctors, scientists, policy makers and business people have banded together in a group called “Missourians for Ethical Cures” to fight the initiative. Choose adult stem cells, the group is proclaiming. Adult stem cell research does not require the destruction of life like that of embryonic stem cell research and therapeutic cloning, also known as somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT).
...
State Sen. Matt Bartle, R-Lee’s Summit and a deacon at First Baptist Church, Raytown, called the initiative “prolix,” which means that it is extended, wordy, tedious, tiresome, diffuse and prolonged. In other words, it is structured so as to wear out the average citizen who will likely give up trying to understand it, the senator said.
...
Other organizations opposing the petition drive include The Center for Bioethics and Culture Network in St. Louis, Missouri Eagle Forum and Concerned Women for America in Missouri. In addition, the Missouri Catholic Conference will kick off a major education initiative in all of its parishes Nov. 26-27. Archbishop Raymond L. Burke of St. Louis, recently called embryonic stem cell research/cloning “intrinsically evil.”