Schwarzenegger has said he supports the technology. His father-in-law, Sargent Shriver, is in the early grips of Alzheimer's disease, which Proposition 71 supporters say could someday be treated by stem cells.
Governor In Tight Political Spot On Stem Cell Research
Schwarzenegger Not Expected To Take Position On Proposition 71
POSTED: 11:33 am PDT August 5, 2004
UPDATED: 1:59 pm PDT August 5, 2004
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger appears to be in a tight political spot over Proposition 71, a bond measure that would provide $3 billion for human embryonic stem cell research in California.
Support Stem Cell Research?
Should Governor Take Position On Stem Cell Measure?
Schwarzenegger hasn't taken a position on the measure and many analysts believe he won't. That's because no matter which position he endorses, he's sure to alienate important constituents.
The measure promises to be one of the most contentious election issues this year.
It pits Nobel laureates, sympathetic patients who could benefit from stem cells and biotechnology interests against religious groups such as the Roman Catholic Church and political conservatives opposed to the research because it involves destroying days-old embryos and cloning.
Already, Proposition 71 is second only to the two gambling-related measures in campaign fund-raising. Supporters have raised more than $8 million while opponents have eked out less than $50,000.
Schwarzenegger has said he supports the technology. His father-in-law, Sargent Shriver, is in the early grips of Alzheimer's disease, which Proposition 71 supporters say could someday be treated by stem cells.
Stem cells are created in the first days after conception and are the building blocks of life. Some researchers hope to turn stem cells into replacement tissue to treat a variety of disease and injury.
Schwarzenegger spokeswoman Ashley Snee said this week that the governor has not taken a position on the measure.
But in an interview on ABC's "Good Morning America" on June 10 when he paid tribute to former President Reagan, he backed the research.
"Well, I support stem cell research," Schwarzenegger said. "And I think it is very, very important that the whole nation pulls together -- on the federal level and the state level."
But Schwarzenegger campaigned heavily against California going deeper into debt when he unseated Gray Davis as governor. Voters have already approved a Schwarzenegger-backed $15 billion bond measure in March to refinance California's debt.
If Proposition 71 is passed, it will provide California researchers with nearly $300 million annually for 10 years but cost a total of $6 billion to pay back, according to Legislative analyst Elizabeth Hill.
What's more, Schwarzenegger is also a Republican who risks angering the more conservative wing of his party.
Proposition 71 would also fund cloning projects intended solely for medical research. Even though the measure specifically bans funding of cloning to make babies, opponents are still aghast that human embryos, no matter how microscopic, will be created with taxpayer funds.
"We are not sure where he is," said Art Croney, a leading Proposition 71 opponent and a veteran Capitol lobbyist for conservative religious organizations. "There's a tremendous public relations campaign underway that is hard to ignore."
A Schwarzenegger endorsement of the proposition would also put him at odds with the Bush administration, which has given him a prominent role at the upcoming Republican Convention in New York.
The Bush administration has severely restricted the amount of federal funds that can be spent on human embryonic stem cell research, a stance that prompted wealthy Californians with sick children such as real estate developer Robert Klein II to organize behind the ballot measure.
Though campaign officials behind Proposition 71 insist the measure has bipartisan support, the campaign is mostly financed by big Democrat financial backers such as Klein, venture capitalist John Doerr and eBay founder Pierre Omidyar.
Marion and Herbert Sandler, co-chief executives of Golden West Financial Corp. and major Democrat donors, contributed $1 million last week. Many Hollywood moguls also back the measure.
"There are political problems," said Bruce Cain, a University of California, Berkeley political scientist. "If he doesn't endorse he's continuing on a path that makes him look more and more like a traditional Republican and that could cut into his popularity. But to endorse is to incur the wrath of the right."
Cain predicted Schwarzenegger would either quietly endorse the measure or, more likely, sit it out.
Jack Pitney, a political scientist at Claremont McKenna College, said Schwarzenegger could come out against the measure without touching on the morality of the issue.
He could argue that financial support of such nascent science should be left to the federal government and private industries, especially as California's budget woes continue.
"He could cast this as a finance and process thing rather than argue against it on the merits," Pitney said.
Still, Pitney predicted Schwarzenegger will avoid taking a stem cell position while concentrating his effort on defeating the two gambling propositions and trying to make good on his promise to overhaul California's government.
Copyright 2004 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
