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I already posted a long reply to a thread on a similar Bash Jeb Bush topic earlier, so I don't know if I have another one in me tonight. I'm just as outraged over all this as the next person and I'm sick over the situation we find ourselves in with a judicial system that wields too much of the power which is supposed to be shared and dictates far more than was ever intended by our founders from the bench. However, I would like to ask you a simple question. Why is Jeb any more gutless than you or me or any of us, for that matter? If you are sitting at home observing the edict of the law and have not gone there to rescue Terri from this, then why would you expect Jeb to go past the point that all his legal counsel has told him he can go without stepping beyond the powers given to him by his office?

The Judicial branch did not gain their stranglehold over us overnight and the idea that Jeb has ultimate power just by virtue of his elected office is not realistic. He does not. If you feel so strongly that this must be done, it is just as much your responsibility as it is his. He already has done more work toward saving Terri than you have done and, despite all his efforts, it did not work. He will not have the power of law standing behind him should he act now any more than you would. He's the governor of a state with the responsibility of millions of people on his shoulders in addition to this terrible situation with Terri Shiavo. So what is your excuse?

So what is your excuse?

We are not in any position to safely "abuse" our power, however much or little we have. Jeb is.

What did Eisenhower do when Gov. Faubus refused to integrate schools? He forced a constitutional showdown, sent in troops, and prevailed. Why? Because he was on the side of right (and had an overwhelming advantage in firepower). If Gov. Bush were truly sincere in his efforts to do everything he could, he would do the same thing. What he really meant was that he did everything he was willing to do in the context of political viability. Not exactly a "Profile in Courage". If that's good enough for you, O.K. The argument that an individual citizen should be held to the same standard for action as the chief executive of a state, especially a state in which a person does not live, is ludicrous.

I already posted a long reply to a thread on a similar Bash Jeb Bush topic earlier, so I don't know if I have another one in me tonight. I'm just as outraged over all this as the next person and I'm sick over the situation we find ourselves in with a judicial system that wields too much of the power which is supposed to be shared and dictates far more than was ever intended by our founders from the bench. However, I would like to ask you a simple question. Why is Jeb any more gutless than you or me or any of us, for that matter? If you are sitting at home observing the edict of the law and have not gone there to rescue Terri from this, then why would you expect Jeb to go past the point that all his legal counsel has told him he can go without stepping beyond the powers given to him by his office?

The Judicial branch did not gain their stranglehold over us overnight and the idea that Jeb has ultimate power just by virtue of his elected office is not realistic. He does not. If you feel so strongly that this must be done, it is just as much your responsibility as it is his. He already has done more work toward saving Terri than you have done and, despite all his efforts, it did not work. He will not have the power of law standing behind him should he act now any more than you would. He's the governor of a state with the responsibility of millions of people on his shoulders in addition to this terrible situation with Terri Shiavo.

I totally agree with you, Route66. And furthermore we need to remember that if it were not for Jeb Bush, Terri would have been dead two years ago. Because of his action then with Terri's Law I, he gave Terri's family two more years with her, and his intention was that they would have many more years. He cannot control how the FSC ruled in throwing that Law out, nor how the FL Senate voted this time around.

I'm scared that we're targeting the wrong people with the blame for this, and that the tragedy that has happened will be wasted because the wrong people will be vilified - good people that have actually worked hard to save Terri's life.

Jeb? He's done nothing but pass the buck, first to the legislative branch and then to the judicial branch. He has not accepted one ounce of executive responsibility to take ANY EXECUTIVE ACTION. His legal staff has positioned all of his possibilities to draw court orders. He has not acted period. People that defend this for the sake of "FReeper" solidarity don't impress me one bit. If I need to align myself with Jeb Bush to maintain solidarity in the conservative cause the cause is not worth defending. We must stand up when the time is right or we cannot stand at all and if ever the time was right it was now. He has the authority to deal with this as chief executive. Any pretense that he does not is not true or bourn of ignorance of the concept of co-equal branches of government. The judicial is supposed to give way to the elected branches when a direct conflict of responsibilities occur. Read the Federalist papers and study the founding fathers intent if you want to understand the issue here.