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| House Votes 203-58 then Bush Signs Bill for Terri Schiavo |
| 2005-03-21 |
| Posted on Mon, Mar. 21, 2005 Bush signs bill aimed at keeping brain-damaged woman alive By Lesley Clark, Erika Bolstad and Martin Merzer Knight Ridder Newspapers WASHINGTON - Lawyers stood ready at a Florida courthouse and nurses stood ready at Terri Schiavo's bedside early Monday as Congress approved and President Bush swiftly signed a bill that could prolong her life. The climactic vote ended in the House of Representatives at 12:32 a.m. EST, and the measure was sent to Bush, who signed it within an hour. The final House vote was 203-58. Schiavo's father, Bob Schindler, emerged from a hospice in Pinellas Park, Fla., and said he told his daughter of the rapid-fire developments. ``You had to wake the president up to save your life,'' he told her. As of 2 a.m. EST Monday, though much remained uncertain, it appeared possible that the severely brain-damaged Florida woman could be reconnected to life support overnight or later Monday. ``We hope to get you some water,'' family attorney David Gibbs said he told Schiavo, in her third day without nutrition at the hospice. ``We hope to get you some dinner later on.'' About 20 miles away in Tampa, family lawyers waited to file a federal lawsuit and judges were alerted for a possible overnight hearing. And so, a right-to-live, right-to-die case that has galvanized national attention seemed poised to open another chapter. The Senate approved the measure on an unchallenged voice vote during a rare Palm Sunday session that came amid charges of cynical political maneuvering. Only three members were on the floor and the bill's prime sponsor, Republican Sen. Mel Martinez of Florida, served as presiding officer. On the other side of the Capitol, House Republicans confronted initial Democratic opposition during the day but began debating the issue at 9 p.m. ``She has a right to her day in court,'' Rep. Steve King, a Republican from Iowa, said during the debate. He attacked what he called ``a relentless effort to end her life by her estranged husband.'' Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz, a Florida Democrat, spoke passionately against the measure. ``We're not God and we're not Terri Schiavo, her sister, her husband or her brother or any relation,'' she said. ``We are thumbing our nose at the Constitution if we do this tonight.'' Nevertheless, passage was so likely that Bush rushed back to Washington from his ranch in Crawford, Texas. ``Time is not on Terri Schiavo's side,'' said House Majority Leader Tom DeLay. Now 41, Schiavo has relied on a tube for food and water since 1990. Doctors and her husband, Michael Schiavo, say she is in a persistent vegetative state. Her parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, and their supporters strenuously dispute that assessment. The feeding tube was removed Friday after the Schindlers lost the latest in a long series of lawsuits in state court. The extraordinary congressional measure - entitled ``Relief of the Parents of Theresa Marie Schiavo ''- would allow them to file suit in federal court, asking a judge to conduct a new review of the evidence, without regard to Florida law or past rulings. The bill's supporters maintain that a federal judge would order the restoration of life support as the case embarks on a new legal journey - though the measure does not specifically call for that and federal courts could rule it unconstitutional. In Pinellas Park, near Clearwater, Schiavo's parents told their daughter's hospice to be ready to have her hospitalized at a moment's notice so the feeding tube could be reconnected. ``We simply want to give Terri the chance she deserves,'' said her brother, Bobby Schindler, 40, a Tampa science teacher. ``We simply want to bring her home.'' Schiavo's husband, Michael Schiavo, who wants to remove life support and allow his wife to die, and his supporters expressed fresh anger over the legislative, political and media drama now swirling around the case. They say they are following Terri Schiavo's wishes in this regard. ``These politicians are out of their minds,'' said Brian Schiavo of Sarasota, Michael's brother. ``Anybody who thinks she talks and responds, they need to have their mental health evaluated because I just spent the whole day with her. She just lays there.'' The parents acknowledged, meanwhile, that the proposed federal law could end up being a mere stop-gap solution. In response, supporters plan to protest Monday in front of the governor's office in Tallahassee, and Schiavo's mother and sister plan to lobby the state Senate on Tuesday. Though a state law passed on her behalf in 2003 was struck down by state courts, they want a new state law that would permanently restore nutrition to Schiavo and remove her husband as her guardian. Gibbs, the attorney for Schiavo's parents, said he would attempt to file a lawsuit at Tampa's federal courthouse as soon as the law was signed - night or day. ``The worst possible scenario would be for the President and Congress to pass this and for Terri to pass away in the night before the court opens,'' Gibbs said. Earlier Sunday, in Pinellas Park, a representative of the Schindler family said a letter was faxed to the Hospice House Woodside, asking employees to finalize preparations for taking Schiavo to a hospital so a nutrition tube could be reconnected. Bob Schindler said he and his wife visited their daughter Sunday and she seemed to be doing well. He also thanked about 50 supporters who spent the day outside the hospice. Some held signs shaped like spoons that read, ``Please feed Terri.'' At one point, her mother, Mary Schindler, pleaded with Congress to act. ``Please, congressmen, don't use this bill for your personal agenda,'' she said. But those Democrats opposed to the bill said it was the Republicans who were exploiting the issue for their political benefit. The Washington Post published a memo it said had been circulated to GOP senators. ``This is an important moral issue and the pro-life base will be excited that the Senate is debating this important,'' the memo reportedly said. It appeared to target Sen. Bill Nelson, Florida's top Democrat, saying, ``This is a great political issue because Senator Nelson of Florida has already refused to become a cosponsor and this is a tough issue for Democrats.'' Democrats said the memo revealed their opponents' real motivation. ``We're making a medical decision about which we know nothing,'' said Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass. ``We should not be making decisions because we're trying to please someone politically.'' Congressional Republicans sought to distance themselves from the memo and denied any political motivation. ``There's no politics here,'' said Rep. Chris Smith, a New Jersey Republican. ``I've been working on the culture of life for 32 years, and whether the public is for or against it, it's all about protecting the weak and defenseless.'' ___________ Yeas Nays PRES NV Republican_ 156__05___00__071 Democratic_ 047__53___00__102 Independent 000__00___00__001 TOTALS_____ 203__58___00__174 |
| Posted by:BigEd |
| #30 There was a lot of confusion (not making excuses) on Terri's condition. From what I can find she is brain damaged but NOT brain dead. That's a HUGE distinction in my mind. To allow a brain damaged person to literally starve to death is a cruel option indeed. Good job congress! Funny how the only life that the left really cares about are criminals and terrorists. |
| Posted by: Cyber Sarge 2005-03-21 10:09:32 AM |
| #29 There was a lot of confusion (not making excuses) on Terri's condition. From what I can find she is brain damaged but NOT brain dead. That's a HUGE distinction in my mind. To allow a brain damaged person to literally starve to death is a cruel option indeed. Good job congress! Funny how the only life that the left really cares about are criminals and terrorists. |
| Posted by: Cyber Sarge 2005-03-21 10:09:32 AM |
| #28 Yet another brick in the validation of the "Democrats are the new Nazis" argument. |
| Posted by: Asedwich 2005-03-21 8:23:48 PM |
| #27 Michael Schiavvo is the only one who claims to know Terri's desire to die. He has shown himself to be less than pond scum, even quitting visitation for her parents while the state kills her. I sincerely wish he and Terri could trade places. He doesn't have her best interests in mind and therefor has NO place as her guardian/executor |
| Posted by: Frank G 2005-03-21 7:53:35 PM |
| #26 Having been married for three decades, I can still remember that our wedding vows stated, "in sickness and in health till death do us part," it DID NOT read, "until I can put you to death as I part." |
| Posted by: Captain America 2005-03-21 7:31:33 PM |
| #25 BigEd--yeah, I meant judicial branch. I was listening to talk radio at the same time, and they were talking about "legislature, legislature, legislature," so I accidentally transposed. Oops! Thanks for catching it. Ha! : - ) |
| Posted by: ex-lib 2005-03-21 6:49:22 PM |
| #24 This is an easy call: A federal court can intervene if there is "state action". Here a judge (1) ordered the tube removed, and (2) denied a request of the parents that they try to give her food or water by mouth. Under those rules, all the babies in the country would die. Ask the question this way: Why can't someone just shoot her? If starving her is cool, then why wait so long? She has to die, according to the judge's order! Finally, this statute merely gives her the same standing as a criminal defendant, i.e., the right to petition a federal court to review a state court decision. |
| Posted by: Kalchas 2005-03-21 6:47:01 PM |
| #23 ex-lib do you mean: Congress is reigning in the out of control |
| Posted by: BigEd 2005-03-21 6:30:15 PM |
| #22 mojo: Calling this situation a "nasty family squabble" is nothing more than media slant / hype/ deconstructionist/ reductionistic lingo. This isn't a "squabble," it's a test case between justice for disabled people, and those who want to define human worth on the basis of unconsitutional elitist definitions of "viability" and "quality of life." I wouldn't be surprised if insurance companies are largely behind it (follow the money). The Sean Hannity show featured a Noble Prize nominated physician who spent 10 hours with Teri Shiavo, and he insisted that Teri is not in a coma of any kind (the definition of Persistant Vegetative State - PVS). He insists that she is alert, conscious, and vocalizes in a variety of ways in reponse to others--proof of her attempts to interact with her world. She lists to see who is in the room because she can't see farther than about 18 inches from her face. When someone enters her field of vision, she responds directly. At this point she can eat and drink on her own, but there is a court order preventing it. The physician reported that her husband has denied even the most rudimentary rehabilitative care she needed before and needs now, and has refused to even allow antibiotics to be administered when she has developed uriniary tract and other infections. (What a great guy.) Additionally, there are affidavits from LPNs indicating that the husband would ask them "Is the bitch dead yet?" and "When is the bitch going to die?" Evidently, he would be upset whenever she improved, and was happy if there was a decline in her recovery. Whenever she was placed in a nursing home, and the staff suggested or began therapy with her, the husband would yank her out of the facility and put her into another one. Further the physician said that she could still learn to walk, talk, and return home to "enjoy going out to restaurants and movies. " This is what's going on, Ship. The media is bullshitting about as much, or more, as they do about the Iraq situation. Big surprise? Nope. About the Florida Courts vs. Congress. A great example of checks and balances in action. Congress is reigning in the out of control legislative branch, which is their right. My opinion is that it's about time. |
| Posted by: ex-lib 2005-03-21 6:17:57 PM |
| #21 Judge Dickhead said, "She lasted 6 days the last time, I have time to decide" CONGRESS. IMPEACH THIS ASS! |
| Posted by: BigEd 2005-03-21 6:01:04 PM |
| #20 Here are the people who voted against Terri Schiavo. If there is any truth to the rumor about the husband was involved in her condition, then they should all resign. And if they do not resign, massive amounts of money should be put into their districts to defeat them... Baldwin, Berkley, Bishop (NY), Brown-Waite, Ginny, Butterfield, Capuano, Cardin, Carnahan, Carson, Castle, Clay, Cleaver, Clyburn, Conyers, Davis (FL), Dent, Dicks, Doyle, Evans, Frank (MA), Gutierrez, Hastings (FL), Holt, Hoyer, Israel, Kaptur, Kennedy (RI), Larson (CT), Levin, Lewis (GA), Matsui, McDermott, McKinney, Miller (NC), Moran (VA), Murtha, Nadler, Olver, Pallone, Pascrell, Payne, Price (NC), Reichert, Rothman, Schiff, Schwartz (PA), Scott (VA), Shays, Spratt, Strickland, Thompson (MS), Van Hollen, Visclosky, Wasserman Schultz, Watt, Weiner, Wexler, Wu |
| Posted by: BigEd 2005-03-21 4:15:55 PM |
| #19 I've never heard this previously from a doc Dr. White. I may be forced to change my mind. There's tons of BS and stylin on both sides of this.... but if you say so, I'm with ya. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2005-03-21 3:26:13 PM |
| #18 Anyone else listening to Hannity? Is his "big news" rumor have to do with this? mojo : Mrs. D has it right! 14th Amendment issue! Did anyone else hear Rushie talk about the nurse from the late 90s? "Husband" was acting evilly? .."When's she goona die? I'm gonna be rich!" |
| Posted by: BigEd 2005-03-21 3:08:35 PM |
| #17 Key words: Denial of civil right to live without due process of law. Fourteenth amendment. It's a federal case. The same way the FBI gets into KKK murders. |
| Posted by: Mrs. Davis 2005-03-21 2:59:18 PM |
| #16 Key word, guys: State Murder is a state crime, not federal. The US Congress has no buisness in the mess. State legislature? Maybe, even probably, but it's my understanding that Congress is trying to overrule the state court(s) in this case... |
| Posted by: mojo 2005-03-21 2:56:24 PM |
| #15 Mojo, I do recall something about "life, liberty and pursuit of happiness", and we're talking about Terri Schiavo's life. She is NOT been demonstrated to be in an irreversible PVS. Until that's been proven, this is forced euthanasia. Oh, that's too big and fancy a word, a blue state word -- this is murder. There, that's better. And the state has a responsibility to stop murder, not abet it. This mashes on one of my hot buttons. Euthanasia, assisted suicide, whatever you want to call it, is wrong, wrong, wrong. These people have to be stopped. Terri Schiavo has a right to live. |
| Posted by: Steve White 2005-03-21 2:26:53 PM |
| #14 Ask OJ about that, mojo. |
| Posted by: Bulldog 2005-03-21 2:15:18 PM |
| #13 Funny, I don't seem to recall "insert itself into a nasty family squabble" being one of the enumerated powers of the US Govt... |
| Posted by: mojo 2005-03-21 1:52:36 PM |
| #12 SOME THING JUST DON'T NEED VISUALS HAT TIP DRUDGE : President Bush was asleep, came out in hallway, signed Schiavo bill and went back to bed Mon Mar 21 2005 13:03:56 ET Q Can you go over what went on last night, in terms of the President signing the bill and how it went down? MR. McCLELLAN, WHITE HOUSE: Sure. I guess the bill -- the House passed it shortly after midnight, and then the President signed it at 1:11 a.m., in the morning. The Staff Secretary, Brett Kavanaugh, walked the legislation over to the residence for the President to sign. He came outside his bedroom and signed it in the residence. Q Had he been asleep? MR. McCLELLAN: Yes, he was woken up after it was passed, when it was ready to be signed. Q I heard you describe it earlier, he came out of his bedroom and literally signed it standing up in the hall; is that how it went/ MR. McCLELLAN: That's correct, yes. He was just standing in the hall in the residence an signed the legislation then. Q Was he wearing -- Q Is it safe to assume he wasn't wearing a suit and tie at the time? (Laughter.) MR. McCLELLAN: I'm not going into that much detail. Yes, he cleaned up, put on his suit -- (laughter.) END 1:11 AM : The Prez in a robe with his reading glasses signing legislation...Some things are best left to the minds eye {snicker} |
| Posted by: BigEd 2005-03-21 1:46:18 PM |
| #11 Old man Schiavo is after the insurance money to help his new life along, as I understand it. Has the insurance company said what they will do? Life insurance companies want you to live as long as possible so that they can receive and keep the premiums for as long as possible before making the payout. If they allow Mr. Schiavo to collect, they are setting precedent that they will payout on euthanasia. This could accelerate a lot of deaths. The insurance company has a financial incentive to file a wrongful death suit against Mr. Schiavo, preventing him from collecting on the policy because he caused her death, particularly given what Dr. White stated above. Anybody know who the insurer is? |
| Posted by: Mrs. Davis 2005-03-21 11:50:04 AM |
| #10 I've been waiting to hear what you had to say about this, Doc. Given that they will have to starve her to death for her to die was all I needed to hear to know that hubby's a complete asshole. |
| Posted by: .com 2005-03-21 11:44:04 AM |
| #9 Isn't the bottom line of all this that the "husband" never brought up her desire not to be kept alive until SEVEN YEARS AFTER HER ILLNESS? This not only does not pass the smell test, this is like driving past a dairy farm on a foggy morning! The judge and "husband" can have doctors they know will give the "right answer" in briefs, and everybody thinks they are very cozy, but, owing to the events of 2000, the Florida state courts have shown they are leftist pre-judgingly corrupt, and are being watched. The Legacy of Lawton Chiles. |
| Posted by: BigEd 2005-03-21 11:42:41 AM |
| #8 Terry Schiavo is NOT in a persistent vegetative state. She interacts occasionally with her environment. There's direct and compelling evidence of that. That fact alone means that she is not in PVS. Further, she's never had a proper medical work-up for PVS. The chief expert for the husband is well known to be a full-fledged member of the forced euthanasia movement. He's a professional testifier in the court system and he has, to say the least, a suspect reputation. His claims that Terri has PVS shouldn't be taken without clear verification, and that hasn't been done. She's never had a brain MRI scan. She's never had a brain PET scan. Both are clearly needed to make a diagnosis of PVS in 2005. I say that as an internist. If Michael Schiavo starved his dog to death, he'd be brought up on cruelty charges. The whole euthanasia movement is wrong, wrong, wrong, and their desire is to make it happen in this country under the guise of a "right to die". You might have a right to die, but you 1) don't have a right to involve me as a physicians and 2) you can't start killing others whom you think have "a life not worth living." These people are dangerously wrong, and they have to be stopped. |
| Posted by: Steve White 2005-03-21 11:22:55 AM |
| #7 Along those lines: The liberals now stand for death and oppression. And, with their allies on the courts, they use the letter of the law to impose their will. |
| Posted by: Robert Crawford 2005-03-21 9:50:03 AM |
| #6 Anyone else remember how up-in-arms the Loony Libs were over a memo from Rumsfeld giving permission to switch Khalid Sheik Mohammed to a cold-food diet? Somehow this was proof that the administration was torturing people... And yet, suddenly, the same people (by and large) and their political allies want to STARVE someone to death, and have even gone so far as to blather about how "peaceful" and "gentle" a death by dehydration and starvation is. So, as far as I can tell, for the American Left: o Be responsible for the murder of 3,000 men, women, and children in the largest single incident of terrorism in history: the US government must keep you alive and COMFORTABLE. o Be an inconvenience to someone: you have to die. |
| Posted by: Robert Crawford 2005-03-21 9:29:44 AM |
| #5 Say rather that the Democrats are anti-life. The local TV station here in Washington is giving the strong impression that those damn Republicans are saving someone's life again. Hell she's been locked in that room for how long? 15 years? Hell I'll be in vegitative state too. |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2005-03-21 9:23:40 AM |
| #4 BullDog I left a comment at BBC have your say. I have no great hope they will choose to publish it. |
| Posted by: Sock Puppet O’ Doom 2005-03-21 8:57:32 AM |
| #3 The Democrats prove to be pro-death, again The different perspectives are evident on this side of the pond, too, where the Guardian refers to "a right to die case", and as the BBC puts it: "US President George W Bush has signed a law designed to force doctors to keep a severely brain-damaged woman alive". Contemptible bastards. |
| Posted by: Bulldog 2005-03-21 8:53:43 AM |
| #2 The Democrats prove to be pro-death, again. |
| Posted by: Tom 2005-03-21 8:38:43 AM |
| #1 Bravo. |
| Posted by: AzCat 2005-03-21 6:50:28 AM |