Posted on 03/24/2005 6:51:21 PM PST by FairOpinion
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - It's not often Gov. Jeb Bush is frustrated pursuing his goals. He was the first governor to start a statewide school voucher program. He got rid of civil service protections for tens of thousands of state workers. He pushed through billions of dollars in tax cuts. His goal of prolonging the life of Terri Schiavo is proving much harder.
"It is frustrating for people to think that I have power that I don't, and not be able to act," Bush told The Associated Press on Thursday. "I don't have embedded special powers. I wish I did in this particular case."
Bush canceled travel plans Thursday to monitor the case of Schiavo, a brain-damaged woman who has gone without food and water since a judge ordered her feeding tube removed March 18.
He was in constant contact with his legal office, ordered staffers to e-mail and call him with developments and demanded state laws be scoured for a way to reconnect Schiavo's feeding tube.
At his office, Bush waved an affidavit from neurologist William Cheshire that questions whether Schiavo is in a persistent vegetative state. The emotion in his voice rose as he detailed how the affidavit stated Schiavo made a crying sound, grimaced and pressed her eyebrows together when a doctor said he was going to turn her over.
She "signals her anticipation of pain. Just like you would, or just like I would. Now is it perfect? Is she responding with the same eloquence that you would respond to? ... No. She's severely, profoundly disabled," Bush said.
The governor's court record is mixed. He succeeded in removing affirmative action guarantees from state hiring and university admission practices, but a law requiring doctors to notify parents if they perform an abortion on minor girls was thrown out.
Still, he's been persistent. After a court threw out a law requiring tougher sentences for three-time felons, the governor went back to the Legislature and fixed the problem. Currently, he and lawmakers are working on a plan to require parents be notified before their minor daughters get abortions.
In the Schiavo case, he's running out of legal avenues — but not hope.
"You know what I hope for first and foremost? That Mr. Schiavo would say, 'I'm going to let Terri be with her parents. I'm going to move on with my life. I've made my point,'" Bush said, referring to Schiavo's husband, Michael, who insists she would not want to be kept alive artificially. "That obviously doesn't appear to be happening."
"So secondly I pray for an openness by the people who are responsible for making these decisions so we can act and allow for her to stabilize."
He says the courts appear to have turned a deaf ear to his arguments.
"For this lockdown to occur without having the ability to have an open mind, and say, 'Well, maybe there are new facts on the table, maybe there are new technologies, maybe, just maybe, we should be cautious about this' ... is very troubling," Bush said.
In 2003, when the Legislature passed a law allowing Bush to order the feeding tube reinserted after it had been removed, critics accused him of political grandstanding as his brother, President Bush (news - web sites), sought re-election.
Justin Sayfie, Bush's former communications director, said they were wrong: "He's term-limited out. His brother is term-limited out."
"Most strategists or political operatives would say 'Don't touch this,'" said GOP political strategist Geoffrey Becker, noting polls show most people don't believe government should be involved in the case. "I firmly believe that this is his personal conviction, that he believes this is the right thing to do."
LOL! Yeah........right. And I'm not from Ohio either.
Please let all of us here at FR know what YOU have done to allieviate the thirst of TERRI.
" grant full or conditional pardons, restore civil rights, commute punishment, "
I think this applies here, or certainly should.
I don't share his frustration.
He's afraid of the courts. The Governor of Florida is afraid of a bunch of judges. So he wrings his hands and whines, like an impotent weakling, about how frustrated he is instead of doing whatever it takes to save Schiavo's life.
I sure wouldn't want him next to me in a foxhole.
I was itching for a good verbal brawl anyway, and these idjits are the perfect foil, with their cajones nonsense. :o)
And Terri's Law was declared unconstitutional.
He should have gone after them with the big guns, but didn't because there are too many politicians and laywers and the Attorney General involved. Not to mention Medicaid Fraud. Terri is on Medicaid in the Hospice where she is at. In order to be on Hospice, you have to be terminally, which she has never been.
>> You expect better men than you to break the law and throw the system into chaos, while you sit on your ass in your livingroom and call other people "stupid".
You are unbelievable. Jeb Bush has had power from day-one to enforce the law, and he has deferred his power to unelected judges. We must fix our public schools ...
He's afraid of the courts. The Governor of Florida is afraid of a bunch of judges. So he wrings his hands and whines, like an impotent weakling, about how frustrated he is instead of doing whatever it takes to save Schiavo's life.
If every governor, mayor, or president started ignoring the court rulings they disagreed with, our system of checks and balances and seperation of powers would crumble. We should go ahead and make chief executives dictators I guess.
So, are we to thus await the advent of Hillary and Bill, the deliverers and providers of all things good - or some independent candidate such as say - Lyndon LaRouche or whoever they're pushing now?
>> When I want COURAGE, I'll find a BUSH brother
When you want courage, you had best look somewhere else.
Is this a Tag Team effort by the dark side??
Bump to your post!!
Gov Bush isn't doing squat. He has had 15 YEARS! to prepare for this situation and he blew it. He is AFRAID. Afraid of a contempt order from some two bit judge, but not caring about contempt from a higher authority.
Just not to YOU...............mssr wimp........
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