Wilson, McCarthy Make Bids for Jewish Support

Battling for the support of the state’s Jewish voters, Sen. Pete Wilson and his Democratic challenger, Lt. Gov. Leo T. McCarthy, traded charges Monday over whether either of them had ever supported creation of a Palestinian homeland in Israel’s West Bank.

Wilson, campaigning in McCarthy’s hometown, touched off the debate with a speech at the predominantly Jewish Concordia Club charging that McCarthy said in 1985 that he had “always” believed Israel should give up the West Bank territory it won two decades ago.

The McCarthy campaign responded by pointing out that in 1982 Wilson said, “Hopefully we will have achieved a Palestinian homeland that we can be assured won’t be used as a base for the export of terrorism.”

In separate interviews, Wilson and Darry Sragow, McCarthy’s campaign manager, charged each other with taking the statements out of context but outlined strikingly similar positions on the Palestinian issue.

Wilson insisted he would support a Palestinian homeland only if Israel’s security was guaranteed.

“I don’t think they should give it (the West Bank) up--at least until there is a whole lot more (of a guarantee) than anybody has seen,” Wilson said.

Wilson also said he believed that any eventual homeland for the Palestinians should not be located in the West Bank--a view contrary to McCarthy’s stance.

Sragow noted that in his 1985 statement, McCarthy said he would favor a Palestinian homeland only if there was an absolute assurance of Israel’s safety and the tiny nation was formally recognized by its Arab enemies.

“Pete Wilson has been very supportive of Israel,” Sragow said. “Leo McCarthy is very supportive of Israel. On that issue, the two candidates are very similar.”

The exchange over the question of a Palestinian homeland came as the two candidates stepped up their campaigns following last week’s Republican National Convention.

Wilson, who has maintained a commanding lead in both public opinion polls and fund raising, is seeking to broaden his support by appealing to voters who have traditionally supported Democratic candidates.

Later in the day, the Republican senator attempted to woo support from the state’s homosexual community, another largely Democratic constituency.

Wilson announced that he will oppose Proposition 102, a measure on the Nov. 8 ballot that would require doctors to report to public health officials the names of patients who test positive for exposure to the AIDS virus.

McCarthy has already announced his opposition to Proposition 102 and has signed the ballot argument against the initiative.

The senator chose to make his announcement in San Francisco, home of California’s largest homosexual population. Afterwards, Wilson held a $140-a-person fund-raiser with some of his gay supporters.

Wilson’s opposition to the measure sets him apart from some of the more conservative members of his party who support the measure, particularly Rep. William Dannemeyer of Fullerton, a leading sponsor of the proposition.