A case for the courts.

Byline: The Register-Guard

Terri Schiavo's husband and family have experienced more than enough heartbreak and moral anguish during the long legal battle over removal of her feeding tube. The last thing they need now is to be exploited by people trying to milk the tragedy for every ounce of potential political gain.

The saddest proof of Schiavo's utter helplessness is the inability of anyone who loves her to protect her from the selfish manipulation of those for whom she is nothing more than a free pass to prime time on TV. Pick a platform - death with dignity, activist judges, abortion, disability rights, federalism, torture, separation of powers, creating a "culture of life" - and photos of Schiavo in her nursing home bed provide the heart-rending hook for the sound bite.

Everyone wants what's "best" for Schiavo, the severely brain-damaged Florida woman who has been in a persistent vegetative state for the past 15 years. That includes Republican leaders, who circulated a list of talking points among Senate Republicans last weekend explaining why it would be to their advantage to intervene in the Schiavo case. It's an important moral issue and the "pro-life base will be excited," the talking points said. It also is a "great political issue - this is a tough issue for Democrats."

How unseemly. Let's not forget how tough this issue is for Schiavo's family.

Michael Schiavo, Terri's husband of 21 years, maintains that she would never have chosen to be kept alive in her current condition. Though she can breathe on her own, she has depended on a feeding tube for survival since her heart stopped briefly in 1990. On three separate occasions, courts have agreed to order removal of her feeding tube, most recently last Friday.

Terri's parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, have challenged every effort to remove the feeding tube. Contrary to the diagnosis of court-appointed doctors, the Schindlers insist that Terri is responsive and slowly improving. They point to the fact that no one has produced any written proof that Terri would want to die. The Schindlers believe that what's best for her is to continue her care and await her recovery.

The bitter and very public family dispute has captured national attention in recent years, a fact not lost on politicians from Florida Gov. Jeb Bush to members of Congress. They have not missed any opportunities to insert themselves into the Schiavo family's business with their own ideas about what's best for Terri.

In one particularly unflattering bit of grandstanding, Republicans thought it would be best to subpoena Terri Schiavo to appear before House and Senate committees. Ultimately, in the glare of unrelenting 24-hour news coverage, Congress passed emergency legislation signed by President Bush early Monday morning that allows a federal court to review a Florida judge's decision to remove the feeding tube.

Curiously, the political agenda associated with the Schiavo case appears disconnected from the sentiments of the American public. According to an ABC News poll released last week, 87 percent of those surveyed said they would not want to be kept alive if in Schiavo's condition, and 65 percent said a spouse should have the final say in what happens to a patient, as opposed to parents.

Too bad Congress pays more attention to political talking points than to the feelings of its constituents. No matter where one stands on this complex issue, the courts have conscientiously considered the facts in this case and have always been the appropriate venue to decide Schiavo's fate.