Posted on 06/22/2005 8:06:02 PM PDT by Tumbleweed_Connection
"Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last?" asked Joseph Welch in his famous confrontation with the pathologically cruel Joe McCarthy. "Have you left no sense of decency?"
More than a half-century later, I would ask the same question of Florida's governor, Jeb Bush.
In an abuse of power that has been widely denounced, and has even appalled many of his own supporters in the Republican Party, Governor Bush has tried to keep the Terri Schiavo circus alive by sending state prosecutors on a witch hunt against her husband, Michael.
The state attorney who has been pushed by the governor into pursuing this case told me yesterday he has seen nothing to indicate that a crime was committed. Nevertheless, the inquiry continues.
Governor Bush asked Bernie McCabe, the state attorney for Pinellas County, to "take a fresh look" at this already exhaustively investigated case to determine, among other things, whether Michael Schiavo had perhaps waited too long to call for help after discovering that his wife had collapsed early one morning 15 years ago.
Mr. McCabe did not seem particularly enthusiastic about his mission. "I wouldn't call it an investigation," he told me in a telephone conversation. The word "investigation," he said, "is a term of art in my business."
He then explained: "When I conduct an investigation, it would mean that I have a criminal predicate. In other words, that I have some indication that a crime has occurred. That's my job...
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
It IS a witch hunt.
When can we start?
"In this circumstance, that does not exist at this time. So what I'm attempting to do is respond to the governor's request by conducting what I'm calling an 'inquiry' to see if I can resolve the issues he raised." [my emphasis added]
So...in that grand tradition of American leftists, the "life at all costs" crowd pushes for investigation where no evidence exists. Go, Jim Wright!
Sad that this man must twist terminology to try to "see if [he] can" do this.
I have to agree with the NY Times this time. I like Jeb, but he needs to let this one go.
No prejudice here on anyone's part.
Nothing to see here, folks. Move along.
A lot of people need to let it go already.
That poor woman was openly and brutally murdered in front of the whole world. Her husband could have handed her over to her parents and walked away but choose to kill her instead. I hope Jeb gives that bastard hell.
Mark Fuhrman has given Bush a head's up on the timeline problems. There are very definate timeline inconsistances by Michael's own words, according to Fuhrman.
I heard Fuhrman give an interview on this. He would not say Michael was guilty of anything. But he said there was something wrong with the story of what happened that night. Fuhrman spent a couple of months here in the Tampa area checking this all out. He said Michael is not the man he presents to the world.
We all know what happened on one of his previous investigations - A several decades old murder case was reopened and a murderer brought to justice. The moment Fuhrman's book comes out, there are going to be calls for Bush to investigate. He's getting a jump on it, that's all. Because he knows people are going to be calling for answers for anything Fuhrman brings up in the book, and he better have some. "I don't know" is not a valid response.
It's just a shame this wasn't done properly when Terri collapsed.
It's comforting that the NYTimes believes in allowing the senile to submit pieces for its pages...
I'm pleased to see that some sanity has started to prevail on this issue in the aftermath of the autopsy.
I can give Jeb and W a pass for trying to be sure, but Terri's brain was 1/2 the weight of an adult and the autopsy determined that she had long ago lost her sight.
The "responses" she displayed were consisted with a persistent vegetative state. I think further inquiry and investigation is a waste of public resources.
She's in a better place, let it go.
On the other hand, drilling for oil off Florida is a good way to get yourself UNELECTED. Any politician would have taken the same position. At the same time Haitians turn out to make mighty good Republican voters. They are forgiven by all real Freepers!
Thank you! But you're lucky Jeb isn't the governor here...else he'd want to prosecute you for respecting my Do Not Resuscitate bracelet!
I agree with the last comment. She was killed. There is some suspicion. Politically speaking, however, it may have been better for Jeb not to make this move. But it doesn't bother me that he did it. Did anyone hear Schiavo's lawyer (Felos? sp) after the death. Talk about creepy...
I don't see how you could describe the Schiavo fiasco without using the word "circus".
They have this custom in India of just leaving certain people to die in the streets. We will adopt it in cases involving folks who believe compassion is misplaced when directed at those who are near death.
Remember, none of this is about you. We don't care. Don't bother leaving instructions either ~ don't be wasting our time.
Stay in the streets please ~ we need those hospital beds for people who care.
"My purpose," he said, "is simply to respond to the emperorgovernor. The governor's asked me to do something, and I'm going to try to do it."
And it's worth hounding a man who has lost his wife and has no evidence of having committed a crime...as long as it responds to the governor's whim. What happened to America where we fought back when government tried to harass people without charges? What happened to innocent til proved guilty?
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