Sam Brownback: “If I could, Mr. President, and I thank my colleague from Illinois for engaging in the debate because I think that it is…”

“If I could, Mr. President, and I thank my colleague from Illinois for engaging in the debate because I think that it is a debate that we have needed for a long time. It appears we have agreement that life does begin at conception. Senator Kerry campaigned on that running for President. I presume my colleague from Illinois agrees similarly. Others have argued, yes, an embryo is alive but it is not yet a life. To say that a young human embryo is alive, but it's not yet a life, seems to be a bit of a legal fiction--if we are going that route. A young human embryo is biologically and genetically distinct. It is a separate entity. It is alive. It should be treated as either a person or a piece of property. My colleague may know that in some countries in Europe on this IVF procedure, they are very careful about the number of eggs that can be harvested and fertilized before they are implanted. I think that would be a good process for us to pursue and to look at so that it is not a huge multiple set of lines but a much narrower group that are created-- so that they are treated with the dignity and respect that life should merit and that life should have. I think my colleague from Tennessee was saying this since he obviously referred to the entity in question as a nascent life. So let us look at that and let us start going at those areas. Would you try to lead to criminalization, and I recognize that may be a good point in the debate but that is not anywhere near where we are today.…”