MD Senatorial candidate, Lt. Gov. in hot water for comparisons:

Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele infuriated some participants at a Baltimore Jewish Council meeting yesterday by raising the specter of Nazi experimentation on Jews when explaining his opposition to embryonic stem cell research.

"Look, you, of all folks, know what happens when people decide they want to experiment on human beings, when they want to take your life and use it as a tool," Steele told the group of about 35 Jewish leaders and other guests, according to a tape recording of his remarks.

Steele, considered a Republican rising star nationally, is running for an open U.S. Senate seat in Maryland. His remarks brought immediate condemnation from U.S. Rep. Benjamin L. Cardin, a leading Democrat in the race, whose wife was in the audience, and from others who were there.

"If the lieutenant governor was drawing a comparison between stem cell research and human medical experimentation during the Holocaust, he must understand the pain this kind of analogy would inflict on survivors and their families," said Arthur C. Abramson, the Baltimore Jewish Council’s executive director.

"We absolutely reject any comparisons between ethical and lifesaving medical research and the horrors committed by the Nazis in their evil drive to create a master race," Abramson said. "We welcome any clarification Lieutenant Governor Steele can offer about his remarks."

Steele’s office released a statement late yesterday: "When I was asked the question about stem cell research, I had just finished speaking at length about my first trip to Israel and the powerful memories I had of my visit to the Holocaust museum there. Those memories have had a lasting impression on me, but in no way did I intend to equate the two or trivialize the pain and suffering of more than 6 million Jews."

Reached at home last night, Cardin said he considered Steele’s comments "offensive to both the millions of Americans who stand to benefit from the research and the Holocaust survivors and their families."

"Michael Steele has it backwards," Cardin said. "This is not about experimenting on humans. It is about saving lives. We should let scientists, not politicians, make decisions about these issues."