I am so weary of the media pretending that the federal “Terri’s Law,” was just a Republican bill. In fact, it was one of the most bipartisan laws passed during the Bush presidency.
I bring this up because the issue was raised in tonight’s Republican debate in a question to Rick Santorum, who led the effort to save Terri’s life. The Corner asked me to respond. Here is most of what I wrote there:
I think Rick Santorum missed an opportunity in his answer about the bill he sponsored that sought to protect Terri Schiavo from being dehydrated to death. Yes, he was fine in defending his motives for pushing the law, which, as he said, sought an independent federal hearing into the case — which a federal judge later refused to hold. But he could have erased a lot of revisionist history by noting that the bill received unanimous consent in the U.S. Senate, meaning not one Democrat objected. Not then-senator Hillary Clinton. Not then-senator Barack Obama. Not Senator Harry Reid. Thus, to claim, as the question clearly implied, that the law was Republican or conservative is just false history. It was only after polls taken in the wake of her death showed that a majority of Americans opposed “Terri’s Law” that Terri Schiavo suddenly become the exclusive property of conservatives and the Republican party. As I wrote on my blog at the time:
I don’t recall Howard Dean opposing the bill at the time. But if Dean and Democrats try to revise history and claim that the law was exclusively a Republican venture, then they will be branding themselves cynics and demagogues, who, when the heat was on, meekly went along. But later, when some polls showed that the move was unpopular, they claim federal intervention was an attempt to impose theocracy. Talk about political cowardice and cynicism.
I also think Gingrich made an excellent point when he noted we offer federal safeguards for condemned murderers — why not a helpless woman whose parents just want to care for her for the rest of her life?
By the way, about 45% of House Democrats also supported the bill. So, no Senate Democrats oppose, and almost half of House Democrats support. That is called bipartisan.
January 24th, 2012 | 8:51 am
[...] reading here: Terri Schiavo in Tonight's Republican Debate » Secondhand Smoke … .gplus #___plusone_0, .gplus #___plusone_1,.gplus #___plusone_2, .gplus #___plusone_3, [...]
January 24th, 2012 | 9:39 am
I just love that photo so much!
And, Wesley, thank you for continuing to hold up this candle.
(Now, bring on the rude trolls.)
[Reply]
January 24th, 2012 | 2:18 pm
McCain fumbled the ball on that question as well. It was the single question I flew to Atlanta to ask him just after he won the primary. http://www.bpnews.net/bpnews.asp?id=27586
[Reply]
January 24th, 2012 | 2:45 pm
I will try not to be rude or a troll. I blame both sides equally for “Terri’s Law.” It was DOA in the Court system because a specifically named citizen, not a generic “average citizen” was given protection, by name. Those with good ethics and consciousness and a true fear of the Throne of God didn’t go far enough to have applicability spread to ANYONE in Terri’s condition, and in fact they didn’t want this to happen out of fear of reprisal of constituents who would now find it illegal if not impossible to starve a proxy to death under the false pretense of a “medical procedure.” The other side was overjoyed that the law only applied to Terri, so there was very little political risk in voting for Terri’s Law for them. So what did we get with Terri’s Law? Good intentions and sometimes disingenuous expressions of support for keeping Terri alive so long as she was in the news. BOTH SIDES and the President knew that this was more of a PR stunt than it was a genuine effort to keep Terri alive. BOTH SIDES knew the courts would never allow for a law giving protections only to a single person because of her name – not because of her condition. So years later we still don’t have any protections in place for the next person in Terri’s position, and that is what politicians should be discussing. I was OUTRAGED that the Tampa Bay Times political editors tried to make this a GOP issue over how Terri was handled by the politicians. If it is to be a subject, it needs to be an American issue over how a nameless soul in the same viable good condition gets treated under the pretense of practicing Medicine. God Bless Terri’s family – they know of my great love and admiration for them.
[Reply]
Wesley J. Smith Reply:
January 24th, 2012 at 3:24 pm
Not trollish at all, John. Thanks.
[Reply]
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