Gov. Bush leads unprecedented lobbying effort (on Schiavo issue)

Less than 24 hours before Terri Schiavo had her feeding tube removed, Gov. Jeb Bush knew the effort to keep her alive was slipping away.

So the brother of the president -- and a prime mover of the 2003 legislation that prolonged Schiavo's life -- called Florida's newest U.S. senator, Mel Martinez, with an urgent plea.

''I'm not sure we can get it done here in Florida,'' Martinez quoted Bush as saying just after a new Schiavo measure stalled in the Florida Legislature. ``Do whatever you can federally.''

What transpired over the ensuing hours was a testament to the influence of the governor and religious conservatives, and will be remembered as one of the most extraordinary moves in the halls of U.S. Congress ever seen on behalf of a single person who, until recently, was little-known to many in the country.

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http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/state/11176614.htm

and yet sign legislation cutting Medicaid, which means that many poor people won't get the treatment they need for their illnesses. Anyone heard of anyone who has died because of this? Wouldn't be surprised if it has happened.

in fact, the senate has added all the PROPOSED Medicaid cuts back into the budget which has yet to be voted on, let alone signed.

been held up by Washington? All I know is that the AR Dem/Gazette had an article about Gov. Huckabee going to Washington to get funds unfrozen so he could pay, among others, the medical bills of over 3,000 Wal-Mart employees.....

Must be some sweetheart deal somebody from Walmart got into a previous budget if the US taxpayer is picking up medical bills for Walmart's employees in Ark. Believe me the federal gov't is not picking up the medical bills for service employees of other big companies.

are employees of Walmart because Walmart's health benefits are priced too high for their employees to purchase on the stipends that Walmart pays its employees... Ergo, the federally funded Medicaid moneys are used to pay for Walmart employee health benefits.

if their employer doesn't provide "free" health insurance with the job? I thought the bulk of Medicaid $ in all states went to the elderly in nursing homes, personal care homes, etc. because Medicare doesn't pay for extended care beyond (30? 60? 90? days, not sure what the # is.)

qualify for Medicaid. The reason for the reference to Walmart is that many of their employees often qualify for the program.

Used to be you had to qualify for welfare before you could receive Medicaid. Is that another of the changes in "Welfare Reform?"

had a front page article either Friday or Thursday (I read this at my bank, and don't have copies here to check) about how over 9,000 Medicaid recipients in AR are employed by companies. Over a third of this number are employed by Wal-Mart.

proposal

is a constitutional amendment because the FL SC would strike down any law the legislature passed in regard to Schiavo. Not enough time for that if there had been the will to do it and anything less is a waste. A lot of the legislators as well as Bush know that and were unwilling to pass another bill to be ruled unconstitutional in short order.

Remember when conservatives were supposedly against the government interfering with people's personal lives?

and the sanctity of marriage.

I despise good 'ol boy Jebthro, but clearly, Schiavo is not in a persistent vegitative state from the video I saw. I support the right to die 100% but I don't think her husband has her best interest at heart. Has anyone checked his party affiliation, probably a thug.

affiliations questioned.

I think her husband has something to do with her current state. That and wanting to have her die to cover it up seem to me to be thug behavior.

doctors/investigators would not agree with you. Your speculation and suspician does not make it so. Wishfull thinking on your part is disgusting.

It's not speculation on my part except for wondering if he's a rethug. I've read family members who speculated that he had a hand in what happened to her.

(snip)

…At the hospital, she reads a story to some young patients and makes them laugh. But back in the van for the drive home to Kennebunkport, she says that the book she was given to read was without educational value and that the hospital administrators were obsequious—a quality she dislikes. “They thanked me three times, when once would have been fine.” Then, softening abruptly, she thinks back to that morning’s visit to the hospital’s neonatal ICU, where she saw premature infants in incubators. “Where do you draw the line” in saving those who would not have survived in another time? “What kind of quality of life? It’s the same thing with old age. Are we doing the right thing?” Then again she says of one severely impaired newborn, “But, they say she’s brought great happiness ...”

more…
http://msnbc.msn.com/id/3225744/

Conservatives to shore up their vote in 2008...just as his brother did. He has to prove to them that he is a good Christian and supports life. That just makes me sick! :puke: How can any compassionate person have so little respect for a fellow human being?
Let the poor girl die in peace and finally meet her maker with as much dignity as possible. I wonder why the Christians aren't clamoring to let her die so she can be with God?