Real pro-lifers, please stand up

To the editor:

Pro-life organizations are calling the cloning bills in the Missouri Senate and House the most important pro-life legislation since the partial-birth abortion bill of 1999. This will be a difficult vote for legislators, especially the Republicans who have won elections in rural Missouri on their pro-life platforms. Republicans also tout themselves as pro-business, and Stowers Institute and Washington University are pressuring legislators to oppose these bills because they would hinder new jobs involving medical research.

How do legislators that claim to be both pro-life and pro-business vote on a bill that has these issues in opposition? It forces a believer of both issues to choose the one that is most important. Legislators will have to show if they claimed to be pro-life just to get elected or because of true moral and religious beliefs. Pro-life Democrats will also be put to the test. I will vote for the ban on cloning if it gets to the full House. Gov. Matt Blunt has already made his decision, saying he would veto this bill if it came to his desk. The governor apparently has chosen pro-business over his pro-life beliefs.

Contact your legislator and say you want a bill not weakened by amendments to come to a vote so you can see if your legislator stands up.

State Rep. BELINDA HARRIS, District 110, Hillboro, Mo.