Posted on 11/02/2006 5:23:50 AM PST by 8mmMauser
Republican gubernatorial front-runner Charlie Crist says he was perfectly clear in opposing governmental intervention in the Terri Schiavo case.
He spoke out loudly.
And he was silent.
Loudly silent.
The day after limping through a tough nationally televised debate, the Republican attorney general wanted to talk about his plans to slash taxes. Instead reporters questioned him about his debate assertion that, “Yes, I did’’ speak out against Congress trying to force the reinsertion of the severely brain-damaged woman’s feeding tube in 2005.
Crist did not publicly express his opposition to the Schiavo intervention until April 2006, more than a year after the Pinellas woman’s death. But he maintained on Tuesday that he forcefully expressed his opposition from the start.
“I spoke loudly,” Crist said in Tallahassee. “I think it’s important that when issues like that come up and you believe that government is the appropriate place for it that you act that out, and you walk the walk, and don’t just talk the talk.’’
The attorney general noted that his office “by not going to court and pushing the agenda on that issue, that was speaking out louder than anybody else did in Florida.”
This is one of many issues — from insurance reform to abortion and civil unions — where Crist has been accused of ambiguity or trying please all sides.
Contrary to his comments Tuesday, during the Republican gubernatorial primary in August he stressed to the weekly newspaper of the Florida Baptist Convention that his office helped the governor’s office with legal work to keep Schiavo alive, even though he personally had qualms.
“I don’t remember that, but I’ll check on it and see,” Crist said when asked about that interview with the Florida Baptist Witness.
Gov. Jeb Bush came to his would-be successor’s defense. “He spoke out to me,” Bush told reporters. Crist, however, said he never directly talked to Bush.
There are few issues in the political realm so black and white as the Terri Schiavo case. People either supported the state and federal government intervening to keep her alive or they didn’t.
But Crist is the second statewide candidate recently to face questions about how he acted during the Schiavo end-of-life controversies that erupted in 2003 in the Legislature and in 2005 in both the Legislature and Congress.
Democratic Attorney General candidate Walter “Skip” Campbell, a state senator from Broward County, has been on the defensive this week for having voted to keep Schiavo alive and later criticizing the governmental intervention. Crist’s involvement in the Schiavo case may be the only common ground between the Schindler family, Terri
Schiavo’s parents and siblings who fought to keep her alive, and her husband, Michael Schiavo, who insisted his wife did not want to be kept alive in a persistent vegetative state. Both sides have criticized Crist.
“When he said in that debate that he’s going to be a leader, my heart dropped. He’s not a leader, he’s a follower,’’ Michael Schiavo said Tuesday. “If he really wanted to stand up he would have said, 'No, this is wrong. The government should stay out of this.’ ... Charlie Crist did not say a word, he was nowhere to be found. He’s a coward.’’
Terri Schiavo’s father, Bob Schindler, wrote an essay in August accusing Crist of snubbing the family’s pleas for him to help their efforts. “Florida Atty. Gen. Charlie Crist let my daughter die. He had it within his authority to save her life, but he turned a blind eye to her suffering,’’ Schindler wrote.
The Florida Democratic Party issued a release saying Crist “lied” about his role in the Schiavo case, but at a brief campaign stop at Arco-Iris restaurant in Tampa on Tuesday, Davis would only say that Crist “misrepresented his position.”
“I was up fighting George Bush and the entire United States Congress, both political parties, and Charlie Crist was unwilling to take a position,” Davis said.
Davis, trailing in polls and campaign money, is hoping his debate performance Monday night will cut Crist’s advantages. No statewide viewership numbers were available Tuesday, but in the Tampa Bay area about 152,000 households tuned in — a ratings jump for that time slot on WFLA — and that doesn’t include those who watched on MSNBC.
- Tallahassee bureau chief Steve Bousquet and staff writer Alex Leary contributed to this report. Adam C. Smith can be reached at asmith@sptimes.com or (727) 893-8241.\
I'd been hoping that Jodi would have been smart, and rather than marrying Michael she would have vanished with the kids, leaving behind a note suggesting that it might be a good idea for he and Felos to transfer $250,000/year for the next few years into Swiss bank account #30,127.
A new case is developing with details yet to come, but appears to be one more case of the death culture permeating our health facilities. Malacoda started a thread. Thanks, wagglebee.
Her son made movements that a nurse first called spinal reflexes but then went and got doctors to see, too, according to Kennedy.
Camden police were brought into the room when doctors came in to turn off the life-support Saturday morning.
Family Fights Hospital To Keep Boy On Life-Support
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I saw this earlier. There wasn't much information yet.
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CBS 3) Matthew Bollinger was walking along Macaw Ave. in Atltantic County, New Jersey Wednesday night when he was struck by car, leaving him with multiple skull fractures and severe brain swelling.
The 16 year-old was taken to Copper Hospital where was put on life support, and later pronounced brain-dead.
The hospital policy is to remove life support once a team of doctors determines that a patient is brain-dead; however his family is asking for more time.
"He's been fighting every night, you know they said he wasn't going to make it through the night, and he's made it. They want to take him off the life support. My thing is I don't want him off the life support," said Karen Kennedy, the victim's mother.
Bollinger's parents say the doctors at Cooper have terminated care because Matthew has tested negative for brain activity, twice since Friday night.
"I want a chance for the swelling to go down, and re-test him," said Kennedy.
"Nobody should have the right to play God with somebody else's child," said the patient's stepfather, Joe Kennedy.
Cooper Hospital said they are simply following the law.
Bollinger's parents went to see a prosecutor Saturday night, who told them they do not have a criminal case; however they might have a civil one.
Family Fights To Keep Their Son Alive
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"I don't expect him to be on life support for years and years. I just want a chance for his swelling to go down. And retest him, and give him that opportunity," said Kennedy.
Cooper Hospital would not discuss the case with Action News, but did release a statement:
This has been a very sad day for all of us at Cooper University Hospital. This is a tragic situation and our hearts go out to the family of Matthew Bollinger. We will do everything possible to help his family through this very difficult time."
Family Fighting Hospital in Life Support Scenario
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A New Zealand woman who travelled to China for stem cell treatment died on Thursday night in the arms of her husband, Rein. She was 66.
Willie Terpstra, a New Zealander, was diagnosed with motor neurone disease in 2004.She left her home in Rotorua 18 months ago to have a foetal cell tansplantation operation in China.
The Controversial Stem Cell Transplant Surgery a Failure, Patient died
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For every good man, you know there is a good woman behind the scenes. Oh poor little sweet innocent thing she is.
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jodi said in mike's book, page 224:"I was getting concerned that Mike was never going to win this battle for Terri. I actually told George that if he wasn't going to be a street fighter like Anderson, we weren't going to win.
You have a thoroughly devious mind. We like that. There will be a little something extra in your pay envelope this week.
I could have written the script for this. In fact, I did, about twenty times, right here in Terri's threads. The next line or two invariably convey some euphemism for snuffing the patient. Here, I'll write one of those for you, too. They're easy.
However, it is the sad but unanimous decision of the [fill in the blank]________ Hospital Bioethics Committee that [fill in the blank] _________ is now beyond medical help and should be allowed to pass with dignity so that the family's grieving process can begin. Plus, we need the bed and the respirator."
Do you doubt that Jodi knows enough that she could sing like a canary should she feel like it?
Actually, even if she's not nasty enough to blackmail Michael that way, I'd think that if she's at all smart she'd make sure Michael knows that there are some trusted friends who could give the police some sealed envelopes if anything were to happen to her. She wouldn't say how many friends, or who they were (that would be dumb) but advise him that it would be bad for him if anything were to happen to her.
Sure thing, Jodi, uh huh, right, this was a fight "for Terri."
I commend your courage in reading the &*%^$# book, btw. I don't know if I could stand more than a few minutes of it without passing a stone.
But could we suppose Mikey's intellect would supercede his urges? Jodi may have things lined up and reason that Mikey would be smart enough to understand, but when those urges come up, well, they sort of take over.
They might have developed a little Brain Dead stamp for the forehead of the candidate, sort of like USDA Choice, or maybe there is a certificate or permit to allow the harvesting. Since the definitions are loose, determination may be made by nearly anyone around certified as a grading official, just stamp the product, and go on to the next.
This should do it : )
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In Mike's book page 191: Jodi said,"Mike had a wife and her name was Terri. She came before me, and I knew that. That was just that. Not that there weren't issues here and there. Not like there wasn't anger. Sometimes I was mad at her, because I felt she had done this to herself, and look at what she left Mike to deal with.
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On page 224 in Mike's book, Jodi called the Schindler's "POND SCUM"
Yes, Hitler was blameless. He had no loyalty to those he killed. He gave Himmler the key, but he betrayed nobody either. Make sure you read the fine print.
May the Church of Scientology collapse upon its own evil black heart.
well that will learn me to type when seething. I left out a "not" above as in "who did not save her life."
If Jeb was in charge in WW11, this man would of been dead.
.
This man is the only survivor of 1500 people found still locked up on a train in the sidings at Dachau.
No, I do not doubt that she knows a great deal. One thing she clearly does not know is how Terri was injured. Michael alone keeps that secret. All anyone else can do is weigh the evidence and harbor obvious suspicions.
Michael may just tell us about it sometime. It weighs heavily on him. My only advice to him is, he'd better tell the truth before God asks him in person, or there will be Hell to pay.
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