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Ten Takes on TerriBy Rick Horowitz 1. Great Moments in Presidential Leadership Crawford, Tex., March 19, 2005: "Mr. President, Congress is about to pass special legislation to give Terri Schiavo's parents the right to go into federal court to try to get her feeding tube reinserted." "Then there isn't a minute to waste -- a human life is at stake! I'll interrupt my vacation and hurry back to Washington so that I can sign this legislation at the first possible moment." Crawford, Tex., August 6, 2001: "Mr. President, our intelligence services are now reporting that Osama bin Laden is determined to strike inside the United States, and may be plotting to use hijacked airplanes to carry out some of his attacks." "What's for breakfast?" 2. Just a Slight Change in Wording... The Defense of Marriage Act, as Amended: "Marriage is a sacred institution between one man and one woman. The man is Bill Frist." 3. Who's Zoomin' Who? This is all about social conservatives cracking the whip on the Republicans they helped elect to Congress and the White House, and Republican office-holders and strategists too scared to say no. Or... This is all about Republican office-holders and strategists playing social conservatives like a ukulele, and (Mixed-Metaphor Alert!) tossing them just enough scraps to keep them panting under the GOP table. Or... This is a textbook case of mutual manipulation. 4. The Wonders of Technology The Terri Schiavo case is totally different from all those other cases with family disputes about proper medical treatment for loved ones who can't speak for themselves. Terri Schiavo's parents have a highlight reel. 5. Legislative Body on Steroids? You see what happens? You let Congress start dragging Major League Baseball in front of the cameras, pretty soon they think they can poke their noses everywhere. Baseball may be the national pastime, but posturing is moving up fast. 6. Opportunity Knocks Republican members of Congress care deeply about the fate of Terri Schiavo, and they'd be taking exactly the same steps on her behalf even if that talking-points memo hadn't called the case "a great political issue" for their side. Coming Soon: PRIME SWAMPLAND AT GREAT PRICES! 7. If At First You Don't Exceed... Isn't it comforting to know that Tom DeLay, whose ethical compass seems permanently stuck on "Whatever," is suddenly so willing to lead the way on bioethics? 8. Who's Zoomin' Who II? In the morning papers, from the president of the United States: "In extraordinary circumstances like this," President Bush explains, "it is wisest to always err on the side of life." Maybe the president will go back and take a second look at his own budget proposals, with their expanded tax cuts for the wealthy while important domestic programs go underfunded. Or are poverty and disease and hunger and despair simply too "ordinary" to merit his attention? 9. Nobody's Perfect In the morning papers, from a conservative law professor: "I would be naturally inclined to Terri Schiavo's part in this enterprise," says Douglas Kmiec of Pepperdine University. "This is, however, a benignly intended but tragically mistaken law. It contravenes almost every principle known to constitutional jurisprudence." And that will stop them because...? 10. Culture of Lies Are you old enough to remember when conservative politicians believed in the separation of powers? Are you old enough to remember when conservative politicians believed in respecting states' rights? Are you old enough to remember when conservative politicians believed in protecting personal privacy from government intrusion? Are you old enough to remember when conservative politicians believed that the best government was the least government? Do you ever suspect that the only thing lots of today's "conservative" politicians want to conserve is their own grip on power? Posted 3/22/05. Get
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Rick Horowitz
