by Fr. Michael Reilly
Tuesday, March 22, 2005

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  In that sense, he will be responsible for what is about to happen to Terri.

The secondary issue is the one raised by the media and liberals who object to the heroic action on the part of the president and the Congress. "It is not the place of the federal government to intervene," they lament - as if liberals cared about the constitution or states' rights.

The last time Democrats cared about states' rights was when they wanted to keep black kids out of white schools.

But this concern raises the larger problem which has created the crisis. The issue is not whether the Congress should have intervened, but rather why such intervention was necessary. The reason for that is simple: the judicial branch of the government is out of control.

The confirmation of judges by the Senate was an issue in the 2004 election and this case will broaden the issue to encompass the general incompetence and arrogance of the American judiciary.

The law is intended to serve man; the law is not a god which is above man and sacred in itself.

But the law in Florida seems to be serving only one man: an estranged husband with questionable motives at best who wants his wife dead. We can only speculate as to why he wants his wife dead.

The very fact that the courts in Florida were incapable of protecting the life of an innocent human being speaks for itself. The courts are not competent to handle the law as written, and so Congress must re-write the laws in language that even a brain-damaged judge can comprehend.

Congress must also assert the rights of the legislative branch of government. Congress writes the laws, the president approves and the courts interpret. When did it become the place of a single judge to overturn the work of the elected representatives of the people? Since when can a judge obstruct congressional powers of subpoena?

Is it not amazing that Congress can be in session all weekend, the president flies to Washington to sign a law in the middle of the night, and federal judge cannot get to the bench until 3 P.M. the next day?

The American people will not soon forget this crude arrogance and will hopefully exact a price in the 2006 elections from any elected official who does not execute his constitutional responsibilities.

But Terri Schiavo doesn't have time for that and so Congress had to act in an extraordinary way to save her life and for that they deserve credit.

But Congress must now fix the underlying problems which caused the crisis, or Congress will face the wrath of the electorate in 2006.

Read more on the Schiavo case judge: Stop the Judge, Save a Life.

Editor's note: