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So, in your opinion, this is "time well spent"?
Hate to sound cruel, but we are talking about ONE person here.
IMHO, the senators could be spending time on other issues.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers said on Friday they plan to issue a congressional subpoena to keep alive Terri Schiavo, the brain-damaged Florida woman at the heart of a heated debate over the right to die.
"Later this morning, we will issue a subpoena, which will require ho e administrators and attending physicians to preserve nutrition and hydration for Terri Schiavo to allow Congress to fully understand the procedures and practices that are currently keeping her alive," three Republican leaders said in a statement.
The lawmakers -- House Speaker Dennis Hastert of Illinois, House Majority Leader Tom DeLay of Texas and Government Reform Committee Chairman Tom Davis of Virginia -- support the reform committee's inquiry into the long-term care of incapacitated or non-ambulatory adults.
The subpoena will be joined by a Senate investigation, the lawmakers said.
"This inquiry should give hope to Terri, her parents and friends, and the millions of people throughout the world who are praying for her safety," the statement said. "This fight is not over."
Schiavo has been fed through a tube since she suffered an incapacitating heart attack in 1990. Her husband, Michael Schiavo, contends she would not have wanted to be kept alive in what court-appointed doctors describe as a persistent vegetative state.
Her parents dispute this, saying their daughter responds to them and could improve with rehabilitation.
"Tom DeLay and Dennis Hastert are not members of the Politburo in Stalinist Russia," Michael Schiavo's lawyer, George Felos, told Reuters by telephone. "The state does not own Mrs. Schiavo's body and Congress cannot simply order her to remain alive contrary to her medical treatment wishes and court order."
Felos said Congress has no power to enter an injunction. "The only subpoena Congress can issue is to appear before a congressional body," he said.
The House (of Representatives) on Wednesday and the Senate on Thursday passed legislation aimed at prolonging Schiavo's life, by allowing federal courts to review the case. But the U.S. Supreme Court (news - web sites) declined to step in, sending the matter back to a Florida court.
Late Thursday night, several senators announced they were still holding talks and Congress -- which is supposed to start a two-week recess -- might return on Monday to work on the bill. Even if Schiavo's feeding tube is removed at 1 p.m. Friday, death would not be instantaneous.
In a White House statement, President Bush (news - web sites) said, "In instances like this one, where there are serious questions and substantial doubts, our society, our laws, and our courts should have a presumption in favor of life." He was due to visit Florida to talk about Social Security (news - web sites) on Friday.
Schiavo was in her mid-20s when she became ill and had no "living will" or written directive about end-of-life care. She remains at the Woodside Ho e in Pinellas Park, Florida, under police guard. Outside demonstrators held a prayer vigil.
The Florida legislature failed on Thursday to agree on legislation aimed at stopping or delaying removal of the feeding tube, and Republican leaders said prospects were bleak for an agreement on Friday
So, in your opinion, this is "time well spent"?
Hate to sound cruel, but we are talking about ONE person here.
IMHO, the senators could be spending time on other issues.
i believe they shouldn't be involved in this either... the husband turned down millions of dollars already. he is doing this based on her wishes... i firmly believe that.
Congress loves to think they all wear crowns sometimes. Someone should tell them what legislative means.
I wish they could call a session to tell me how many plys of paper to wipe my ass with.
i'm sure the toilet paper lobbyists would love that...
One could say the same about the judiciary.
Neither branch operates with complete consistency.
I disagree, the Judiciary merly interprets laws, they don't create new ones. As much as the talking heads love to talk about activist judges, they only do what they were put there to do, judge.
I think the executive and legislative branches forget who they are all the damn time however.
Three.
It's the law.
the latest...
By MITCH STACY, Associated Press Writer
PINELLAS PARK, Fla. - The presiding judge in the case of Terri Schiavo ruled Friday that the feeding tube keeping the brain-damaged woman alive must be removed despite efforts by congressional Republicans to block the move by seeking her appearance at hearings.
Pinellas Circuit Judge George Greer refused a request from U.S. House attorneys to delay the removal, which he had previously ordered to take place at 1 p.m. EST. Greer determined that it should go forward about an hour after another judge issued a temporary delay blocking the tube's removal.
"I have had no cogent reason why the (congressional) committee should intervene," Pinellas Circuit Court Judge George Greer told attorneys in a conference call, adding that last-minute action by Congress does not invalidate years of court rulings.
What is the matter with you people?! Many of you are against the death penalty and say we should show compassion, yet you think nothing should be done to save this woman's life? At least the death row inmate gets a pretty quick and painless death - Terri will slowly starve to death over a period of a couple of weeks - that's cruel and inhumane!
I think her "husband's" motives are highly suspect - but that's a whole other story.
i believe he is following her wishes. he already turned down millions so i think he is just doing what she wanted.
I'm all for the right do die. I don't know what she wanted, because I've not kept up with the case, but if she indeed want to die in this type of situation, then I'd grant her that request.
Her husband says she told him she'd want to be "unplugged" if she were ever in this situation... but we only have his word, since she left no official directives. Normally if that's the case, the final say automatically goes to the next of kin (which would be him), so I'm not sure why it wasn't done to begin with.
because her parents have fought it.. what made me finally believe the husband was his turning down of millions of dollars... he could easily have turned over the rights to her parents for the money, but he said no. it was her wish to be unplugged...
Yes, her parents are fighting it, but I'm not sure they had the legal right to say boo in the first place, and I don't know who'd have the authority to supercede the husband's decision just because the parents asked.
No evidence of her wishes. No living will in place, so the courts are involved.
I don't know how I feel about this... Definitely an unenviable situation for all parties involved.
If that was her wish, and then why didn't she have a Living Will in place? Maybe it was never really discussed seriously, just like it's not discussed seriously in about 99.9% of households.
She's not being "unplugged" - she's not on a respirator or life support. She just has a feeding tube because she can't feed herself.
The husband has moved on - he's been living with another woman for years and has two children with her. If Terri's parents want to take over responsibility for her care, why should he stop them? Terri didn't have a living will, so it's just the husband's word that this is what she would want. The parents think otherwise and they are willing to assume all responsibility for her care - he should let them!
It's the usual "Oh, it will never happen to me" scenerio, probably. But she should have thought it might happen to her, because she had a disorder that causes heart arrhythmias.
If you're defenseless or classified as a less than a fully capable human being then you're expendable. If you're a convicted serial murderer then God Forbid we take your life, but be an innocent 7 month unborn child or invalid then by all means kill em.
^^ My thoughts exactly ^^
CNN Reports: Feeding Tube Removed From Terri Schiavo
The feeding tube keeping brain-damaged Terri Schiavo alive has been removed,
according to a source quoted by The Associated Press
Bull
Keep things in context. Felons aren't offered a choice, this is about CHOICE.
If you want to debate that there's no evidence that she wanted to die, that's one thing. But don't turn this into some kind of rant on twisted ideals while ignoring that the arguement you are making ignores the choice factor.
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