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Right wing rides Schiavo gravy train

Despite the work of quacks that would have you believe otherwise, there is no therapy that can undo the fact that a good part of Terri Schiavo’s brain is gone and has been replaced by spinal fluid. She will never recover. Courts have repeatedly found that she did not wish to be kept alive in a vegetative state.

Well, as much as they hate the voice of the people, the GOP hates the authority of the courts even more, and they are simply not going to stand idly by while there’s a chance to pander to gullible faith based voters while bashing the judiciary and cashing in on tons of free publicity.

Even as DCF was being dismissed but petulantly vowing to return, Mel Martinez was playing politics and may be successful bringing the circus to town in support of his version of Terri’s law.

Just eight days before the court-ordered deadline to remove Schiavo's feeding tube, Republicans on Capitol Hill rallied around the case that has become the cause celebre of conservative and religious groups.

Congressional leaders fast-tracked a bill that could lead to a federal court review of the case - and perhaps another trial in Pinellas County.

Almost a dozen conservative and Christian groups marshaled forces and urged Americans to lobby Congress to prolong Schiavo's life.
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George Felos, attorney for Michael Schiavo, sounded resigned that politics in the nation's capital could delay the removal of Schiavo's feeding tube the way it did in 2003, when Florida's governor and Legislature stepped in.

"It's certainly disheartening to see them falling all over each other to pander to these groups," Felos said. "It's a massive campaign of smear and misinformation. It's a repeat of Terri's Law."
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Felos said such a law eventually would be overturned as unconstitutional - as was "Terri's Law" in Florida - because it cannot retroactively affect a case a judge ruled on five years ago, and because a federal right to refuse unwanted medical treatment already exists.

A federal court could decide Schiavo's rights were violated because she did not have her own attorney at the original trial, who would call witnesses and present evidence solely on her behalf.

Though Schiavo has had at least one guardian ad litem, who is supposed to act in her best interests, a lawyer would be different because he would be able to present his own case.

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A sign directing reporters to Thursday's press conference misspelled her name as "Terry" Schiavo. Representatives from almost a dozen conservative and Christian groups attended, as did some of the 17 disability organizations supporting the Schindlers, including the National Spinal Cord Injury Association.

They talked about her "death sentence" and "execution." They said it was illegal to starve animals to death. They said she was treated worse than death row inmates.

"Even the Nazis were hesitant to use starvation and dehydration as a means of inflicting death," said Paul Schenck of the National Pro-Life Action Center. "They reserved it for only their most cruel acts."

Groups at the press conference included National Right to Life Committee, Family Research Council and Religious Freedom Coalition. On their Web sites, the groups encourage people to write and call their member of Congress, as they did Florida lawmakers in 2003.

RightMarch.com said 30,000 to 35,000 have written to their members of Congress through their Web site, and through pleas to their members.
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A reporter asked if it was true that Schiavo could speak 10 years ago before her husband ceased her therapy. That allegation has never been made, not even at the first trial.

Ken Connor, who represented Jeb Bush in trying to pass Terri's Law, answered the question this way: "There's no question that over the course of time Terri has become more unresponsive while in her husband's care," he said.