Politics of Life and Death

In the United States, politics, whether you consider yourself a Replublican, Democrat, or Independant, can be many things: funny, annoying, enraging, or simply disgusting. In the case of Terri Schiavo, the Florida woman whose husband and parents are in a protracted legal battle over whether the feeding tube which has kept her alive for the past 15 years should be removed or not, politics has reached a level of self-serving cynicism that is stunning. I'm not here to debate the right to life/death issues that are in the forefront of this issue (although you can all take this as my call to pull the plug should I ever end up in a similar situation), I'm here to debate whether the President and Congress have any place in this fight.

Most of us, myself included, cannot possibly understand the pain and suffering that comes with having a spouse or child in a vegetative coma. Even fewer people could understand having that pain dragged through the justice system and then into the glare of public spectacle. The courts have ruled several times in favor of removing the life support for Mrs. Schiavo only to have the government intervene; first in the form of Florida Governor Jeb Bush, and now the Republican leadership (much to my dismay, I imagine there are a few Democrats involved with this travesty as well).

According to the Washington Post, which you can believe or not, a memo was sent out by the Republican leadership which called this case "a great political issue" especially in Florida where it would "excite" the Christian right and the Right-to-Lifers and make it hard for elected Democrats in the upcoming elections. I'm sure that this cynical use of personal tragedy for political gain has precedents throughout history, but it still doesn't make it right. Correct me if I'm wrong, but it is my understanding that the courts, not Congress, have jurisdiction over constitutional issues. The courts have passed their rulings, several times as a matter of fact, in this case.

It angered me when I read that the Govenor of Florida got involved in the case, and it angers me even more that Congress is sticking it's nose in an issue it has, in my opinion, no right to be. The sad thing is that no one wins in this case, not Mrs. Schiavo's husband, who is fighting for the removal of life support, nor her parents who are fighting against it. Congressional involvement only makes a sad and tragic situation worse, and apparently, for all the wrong reasons.