(CNSNews.com) - This week's battle of the public opinion polls is the latest skirmish between advocates and foes of human cloning. One poll shows 63 percent of Americans support President Bush's opposition to human cloning for reproductive or research purposes. But another poll shows that 68 percent of Americans want the government to allow scientists to do cloning research.

"The poll shows clearly that the more the American people know about this vital research, the more strongly they oppose government efforts to ban it," said Michael Manganiello, president of the Coalition for the Advancement of Medical Research, in touting the pro-cloning survey.

"We're very pleased that the American people, like President Bush, oppose all human cloning," said Weekly Standard publisher William Kristol about the Stop Human Cloning poll.

So who's right? Pollster John Zogby, who wasn't involved in either poll, says the answer is complicated.

"People can be conflicted in their values," Zogby explained.

"It is very possible for an individual to believe in both," said Zogby, "to be opposed to ... an embryo or child [being] destroyed and at the same time believe that embryonic stem cell research, the creation of embryos for medical research purposes, is a good thing.

"I've polled for years, and 70 percent tell me killing a fetus is tantamount to manslaughter," said Zogby, likening the cloning issue to abortion. "But 69 percent, including obviously many of the same people, tell me they're pro-choice."

The results from public opinion polls are based on "which argument tweaks out which value," Zogby said.

In that spirit, both sides this week made a play for public opinion.

The National Right to Life Committee launched an eight-state radio ad campaign warning that "human embryo farms" would be created if the Senate fails to pass a ban on human cloning. The ads mainly target Democratic senators who either support embryonic cloning or are undecided on the issue.

The Stop Human Cloning poll found that 60 percent of Americans said they would be less likely to vote for a candidate if he or she supported legalizing the cloning of human embryos.

During the NBC series "West Wing," the fictional "Harry and Louise" characters who helped send the 1993 Clinton health care plan down to defeat, were featured in a commercial for pro-cloning forces.

Although Harry and Louise were originally created for the Health Insurance Association of America (HIAA), they are now being used by a Hollywood pro-cloning group called CuresNow. The HIAA this week quickly distanced itself from the new ads and its president, Donald Young, vowed legal action to prevent the Hollywood group from continuing to use Harry and Louise in its ads.

The HIAA intends "to use every means at our disposal to stop this misappropriation of our image," Young reportedly said. "To co-opt them for another client and another purpose is at best sleight of hand and at worst identity theft."

The new spot has Harry and Louise talking about cloning over the kitchen table. "One bill puts scientists in jail for working to cure our niece's diabetes," says Louise.
"So ... cure cancer, go to jail?" asks Harry. Louise describes therapeutic cloning as research that uses a skin cell and an unfertilized egg. "Is it cloning?" asks Harry. "No ... just lifesaving cures," Louise replies.

Senators on both sides of the issue expect Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) to schedule a vote on cloning sometime in May.

Supporters of human cloning believe that extracting stem cells for use in scientific research could someday yield cures for human diseases like Alzheimers, diabetes and Parkinson's. Opponents argue that it is wrong to create human embryos in order to destroy them for research purposes.