On election day, I’m not voting for Senator Joe Lieberman, and it’s not why you think…

The issue of Joe Lieberman’s support for President Bush’s policy on the Iraq war has superseded or overshadowed Joe Lieberman’s support of the right wing’s invasive intervention in the Terri Schiavo matter. It was perhaps the most offensive and intrusive act into our personal liberties by the U.S. Congress in recent years. Completely created, introduced and manipulated by members of the Republican Leadership, this issue has largely been forgotten by America, and it should be a constant reminder to us how fragile our constitutional protections are.

Before I continue, left me put this “on the table”. I do not agree with the “Right-to-Life” position, but recognize and respect the decision and opinions of others to argue this position. I admire the hard-fought efforts by both Michael Schiavo, as well as that of his in-laws, the Schindlers, for zealously advocating their position in defense of his wife/their daughter. Regardless of the outcome, I certainly hope that in face of adversity, my family would fight as hard for my interests, as they did for Terri Schiavo.

That being said, I cannot fathom how Sen. Joseph Lieberman could have supported such an intrusive action, and justify his position based upon the facts in this case. Preservation of life is an admirable goal, but at what cost…? At what point do we decide to take away our personal liberties…? Furthermore, as a Senator with extensive experience, he should have been more respectful of the separation of powers among the various branches of government. Based upon the interview he gave with Tim Russert for a Mar., 2005 “Meet the Press”, Sen. Lieberman supported his position by stating that when there are disputing family members, that although the judge heard the facts presented, it was worth an additional examination. A point he continued to support. I agree when there has not been a thorough review of the facts, a detailed examination might be in order, but that is simply not the case here. Not even close. The following link,
http://www6.miami.edu/ethics2/schiavo/timeline.htm,
is a timeline of the facts involved with the Schiavo case. It is so long, and so extensive, that I cannot fathom what any additional review could achieve. Substantial medical review, court appeals and reviews provided ample opportunity and extensive examinations of Ms. Schiavo. Ultimately, Judge Greer’s (Florida State Judge, not Federal) decision was proven correct, that her condition was "consistent" with a person in a persistent vegetative state. U.S. Representative and Senators are often politically motivated in their decisions. Many of the challenges in this case were motivated by political considerations, and Sen. Lieberman should have been much wiser than to support this.

What I find so offensive, so revolting about this issue, is that the U.S. Congress, which should be inundated with the problems in modern America: the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, high oil prices, and global warming, had no business diverting its business from the important national issues to the independent case of Terri Schiavo. Although Sen. Lieberman touts “due process” as his basis for intervention, due process does not mean “no progress,” as this case took far too long and was overwhelmed by State and Federal legislative attempts to intervene in the judicial process. If in fact Sen. Lieberman was concerned about due process, perhaps he should have remained quiet, and left the judicial system alone to run its course. There was not significant support within Connecticut for additional federal intervention in this case, and his actions were not consistent with the interests of his constituency.

For those who question my position, I offer this as evidence of the offensiveness of the Congressional intervention. If Judge Greer had ruled that Terri Schiavo was to remain on life-support, and Michael Schiavo took this issue to Congress, and forced a re-evaluation of the decision, would you support Congressional intervention? Still annoyed? I would have been…

For a detailed timeline of the events surrounding this case, go to the University of Miami, Ethics Programs Website at:
http://www6.miami.edu/ethics2/schiavo/timeline.htm

Adam Stillman, OSDTC

Old Saybrook Democratic Town Committee
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