Mike Huckabee On Terri Schiavo

Mike Huckabee provides an artful dodge on the Terri Schiavo issue. He wants to a Christian conservative and a federalist.

On governmental intervention in the Terri Schiavo case: “I had no problem with the state getting involved because it’s one of their citizens. but I wasn’t sure how the federal government had a role in all that.”

Skeptical social conservatives will read that as Huckabee would let laws get in the way of standing by principle. That is giving Huckabee too much credit. Huckabee has no regard for Terri's Law being illegal. The Florida Supreme Court ruled Terri's Law overstepped the separation of powers.

SEPARATION OF POWERS

The cornerstone of American democracy known as separation of powers
recognizes three separate branches of government—the executive, the legislative, and the judicial—each with its own powers and responsibilities. In Florida, the constitutional doctrine has been expressly codified in article II, section 3 of the
Florida Constitution, which not only divides state government into three branches
but also expressly prohibits one branch from exercising the powers of the other two
branches:

Branches of Government.--The powers of the state government shall be divided into legislative, executive and judicial branches. No person belonging to one branch shall exercise any powers appertaining to either of the other branches unless expressly provided herein.

“This Court . . . has traditionally applied a strict separation of powers doctrine,”
State v. Cotton, 769 So. 2d 345, 353 (Fla. 2000), and has explained that this doctrine “encompasses two fundamental prohibitions. The first is that no branch may encroach upon the powers of another. The second is that no branch may delegate to another branch its constitutionally assigned power.” Chiles v. Children
A, B, C, D, E, & F, 589 So. 2d 260, 264 (Fla. 1991) (citation omitted).
The circuit court found that chapter 2003-418 violates both of these
prohibitions, and we address each separately below. Our standard of review is de
novo. See Major League Baseball v. Morsani, 790 So. 2d 1071, 1074 (Fla. 2001)
(stating that a trial court’s ruling on a motion for summary judgment posing a pure
question of law is subject to de novo review).

The Florida Supreme Court failed to factor that Terri's Law was a violation of the Equal Protection Clause. All the laws must be applied to cititzens equally. Florida law provides "life-prolonging procedures may be withheld" if a vegetative patient if the guardian, the physician and medical ethics committee if it is in the best interest of the patient. Bush and the legislature made a law strickly to benefit the wishes of Schiavo's parents. The Supreme Court rightfully refused to hear the case.

I understand that Huckabee is trying to pander for votes. What a presidential candidates say matters. Huckabee's comments give a framework into the policy decisions he will make. Huckabee comes off as clueless.