Tonight on Countdown (hint: 100% Schiavo)

The Terry Schiavo case has reached a critical mass... seven days after her feeding tube was removed, seemingly all legal avenues at an end, passions running high on both sides. And who knows what will transpire today because the situation keeps producing surprises. So we plan on spending the entire program on this tonight.

Including sage advice on how people can protect themselves through a living will or power of attorney. These laws vary from state to state...

A federal judge on Friday again denied an emergency request from Terri Schiavo's parents to reconnect the brain-damaged woman's feeding tube, but Bob and Mary Schindler immediately appealed to a higher federal court. The Schindlers went back to the 11th Circuit appeals court in Atlanta, which earlier in the week denied a similar appeal, after a federal judge denied another emergency request that the feeding tube be reattached while they pursue claims that their daughter's religious and due-process rights were violated. U.S. District Judge James Whittemore ruled the parents failed the same legal test they had failed earlier in the week - showing that the claims they'd raise at a trial are "substantial." Whittemore ended his order by saying he would be remiss if he did not convey his
"appreciation for the difficulties and heartbreak the parties have endured throughout this lengthy process." http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7293186/

Countdown w/ Keith Olbermann broadcasts LIVE at 8 pm et, and the count is never complete without you. Join us. Alison Stewart is in for Keith tonight.

That's what we're working on for tonight's show.

Finally,
Hope your weekend is good to you.

-- Carey Fox

Keith blogs: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6210240/

Countdown Home: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036677/