Maryland Governor Backs Embryonic Stem Cell Research 
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by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
April 11, 2005
Annapolis, MD (LifeNews.com) — In a weekend interview with a Maryland radio program, Governor Robert Ehrlich said he backs all forms of stem cell research — including the kind opposed by pro-life groups because it involves the destruction of human life.
Ehrlich told a WBAL radio show "I support stem cell research, including embryonic stem cell research."
This governor has made few statements on the contentious issue of stem cell research and he did not address a bill to fund embryonic stem cell research pending in the Maryland state legislature.
Some lawmakers, however, told the Associated Press that the governor’s comments come too late in the legislative session to lend real support to the bill, which uses taxpayer funds for the unproven research.
Previously, Ehrlich said he was "vetting" the stem cell and believed "the federal government is the appropriate venue" for stem cell research funding.
"What we do at the state level … remains to be seen," he said before. "We have some concerns about the present bill."
The Maryland state House approved the bill at the end of March 81-53 and pro-life groups have lobbied Senators to block it there.
The measure spends $23 million annually on the destructive research is sitting in the Senate’s Budget and Taxation Committee. If it ever receives a vote and comes out of committee, pro-life senators may filibuster it on the Senate floor.
Maryland Right to Life also opposes the bill.
"A lot of confusion surrounds this bill, because some legislators who oppose cloning say they will support this bill," the group said in a statement. "They do not understand that stem cell research and cloning go hand in hand – embryos for embryonic stem cell research will be created through cloning techniques and then killed to harvest their stem cells."
Last year the pro-life group successfully fought a proposed law that would have legalized the cloning of human embryos for medical research in Maryland.
Related Sites:
Maryland State legislature – https://mlis.state.md.us
Maryland Right to Life – https://www.mdrtl.org
