"I'm not satisfied yet that we understand fully what caused this depravity that was so shocking to Americans and such a violation of our values," she complained to NBC's Gabe Pressman.

"I have a problem that goes far beyond the disclosures of the horrible behavior and misconduct in the prison," she added, saying that Bush administration officials encouraged Abu Ghraib through "a pattern and practice of misjudgments that add up to incompetence and lack of credibility."

On the starvation torture of Terri Schiavo, however, Sen. Clinton's reaction has been muted. On the day Schiavo's feeding tube was removed, for instance, Clinton said ... well, nothing. And she's been silent ever since.

Failed presidential candidate John Kerry was likewise exorcised about mistreatment at Abu Ghraib, using some of the same language employed by Hillary.

Commenting on photos of the prison mistreatment, Kerry told the New York Times, "They are sickening and appalling, depraved and sad."

But on the starvation execution of Terri Schiavo, the Massachusetts senator is apparently still searching for the right words.

Last May House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said the Abu Ghraib prison photos "reinforce my belief that a full congressional investigation is necessary." So far, however, Pelosi has yet to lend her support to subpoenas issued by Congress last week to probe the abuse of Schiavo.

Sen. Ted Kennedy was outraged by the Abu Ghraib scandal, calling it America's "greatest fall from grace."

"Who gave the green light for the violations of the Geneva Convention?" Kennedy demanded.

But on Terri Schiavo, the Democrats' foremost defender of young women has been, you guessed it, completely silent.

Editor's note: