Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) was more blunt. “My feeling is we need to do something to stop what is an unconscionable act on the part of the Florida court,” he said.
Santorum said that Schiavo, based on brain activity, was close to equivalent of someone with the disease cerebral palsy and that he wouldn’t let the courts allow her to die, adding, “That’s not going to happen on my watch.”
Santorum said that if it was apparent by the end of the week that Florida courts wouldn’t stop the removal of Schiavo’s feeding tube, “Then I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure that they do.”
We all know this won't go anywhere. It's grandstanding, perhaps to paint Santorum as more Pro-Life than one of his prospective Democratic opponents in 2006, Bob Casey, Jr. I think Santorum also bulled this press conference off so he could deflect the attention he's receiving for cheating on his taxes and on cheating the Penn Hills School District, issues we've covered here before. Regardless of the purpose, this is a cynical move because Santorum knows it won't work. He's a ranking member, and it's his JOB to know the rules:
The Senate this week is considering the budget resolution under set procedures outlined in the Budget Act. Turning to other legislation, therefore, would require the unanimous consent of all senators. Senior Democratic aides said it was unlikely Democrats would agree to a request by the majority to take up the legislation, which would be controversial and would lead to changes in an area of the law dealing with habeas corpus — an area of contention.
So, what does God say about cynical grandstanding such as this? Perhaps someone could ask that question at the new bible courses Santorum is running in his Senate offices. . . but, then, from the evidence of the article it doesn't appear anyone is admitting to attending the meetings.
