Matt C. Abbott
Priest-activist defends Jeb Bush, calls Schiavo and judge 'murderers'
By Matt C. Abbott
From POLITICO (Jan. 29):
Father Pavone's response is as follows:
February 5, 2015
From POLITICO (Jan. 29):
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Sitting recently on his brick back patio here, Michael Schiavo called Jeb Bush a vindictive, untrustworthy coward....
Michael Schiavo was the husband of Terri Schiavo, the brain-dead woman from the Tampa Bay area who ended up at the center of one of the most contentious, drawn-out conflicts in the history of America's culture wars. The fight over her death lasted almost a decade. It started as a private legal back-and-forth between her husband and her parents. Before it ended, it moved from circuit courts to district courts to state courts to federal courts, to the U.S. Supreme Court, from the state legislature in Tallahassee to Congress in Washington. The president got involved. So did the pope.
Father Pavone's response is as follows:
As one of those most directly involved in the case of Terri Schiavo, and as one of a small group who were permitted to be in her room both before and after her feeding tube was removed, I can say that I am grateful for the actions that Governor Jeb Bush took to try to save Terri. He knew, as all of us did, that Terri was in fact responsive, contrary to the mythical narrative that endures to this day. Moreover, Terri was not given 'rehabilitation' that failed to improve her condition. Michael Schiavo saw to it that she was denied rehabilitation. She could not even be taken outside for fresh air and sunshine!What I said during those days I say again today: from a moral perspective, Michael Schiavo and Judge Greer are murderers. They put an innocent person to death, in a deliberate and premeditated way.
Jeb Bush saw clearly that this was no ordinary situation. He understood that this was not a case of 'end of life medical treatment,' when, in fact, not every treatment or intervention is required. He realized, as did we, that while there is such a thing as a worthless treatment, there is never such a thing as a worthless life.
Jeb Bush realized, contrary to Michael Schiavo's deluded view of life and death expressed on the inscription he put on his victim's gravestone, that Terri did not 'depart this earth' on February 25, 1990. She was very much on this earth, an American citizen, a sister of all of us, a daughter of God, and just as much deserving of food and water as the rest of us. Jeb Bush was not deceived by the rhetoric of the pro-euthanasia advocates who were coaching Michael Schiavo. Jeb Bush realized that this matter was in fact of concern to him, precisely because it is of concern to us all when an American citizen, on American soil, cannot have access to the food and water necessary to stay alive.
Jeb Bush's actions in regard to Terri Schiavo in no way disqualify him from being president. On the contrary, we need to elect public servants who know the difference between serving the public and killing the public. And he certainly does.
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