With a little over seven months until voters cast ballots on the soon-to-be-approved budget deal between Governor Owens and Democrat legislators, the campaign within the Capitol has already begun. And it sure looks ugly: between an anonymous flier and a state-sanctioned e-mail message, neither side comes out looking clean.

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Will this be interpreted as judicial activism? Another amazing development in the Terri Schiavo case, while I’m still recovering from the shock of agreeing with Jesse Jackson on something.

Can there be a good ending to all this? All I can say is that my human eyes can’t see it. She’s been too long without any water.

And what does the 11th Circuit Court see now that it didn’t before? And what does this mean for the feeding tube status? Questions waiting to be answered…

Denver Post columnist David Harsanyi – and friend of the Rocky Mountain Alliance – will be guest co-hosting today on the Caplis and Silverman radio show: 630KHOW from 3 pm to 7 pm locally here in Denver.

Doubtless the range of topics will include the ongoing cloud of controversy at the University of Colorado, still looking for a replacement for President Betsy Hoffman. The RMA has issued its endorsement of Hugh Hewitt to fill Hoffman’s shoes. One ventures to ask whether Hewitt’s name would come up in an on-air Harsanyi conversation, since his guest-hosting gig will be competing (mostly) in the same time slot.

Even if you are a devoted Hugh listener, though, tune into 630 KHOW at least from 3 to 4 pm. If you can’t do that, surely you can find some segment of Hugh’s show to skip just this once.

A man was clearly convicted of a heinous murder. A jury of his peers, guided by the dictates of Colorado law and their consciences unanimously approved the death penalty. An Adams County district judge overturned the death penalty because the jury’s decision was in some small degree informed by reading Bible passages.

Yesterday, the morally-confused Colorado Supreme Court upheld the judge’s decision.

My question: what if jurors had consulted Bible passages that convinced them the murderer deserved clemency? Like the recent US Supreme Court decision written by Anthony Kennedy regarding the juvenile death penalty, though, it’s not as much the substance of the issue that was decided as much as the reasoning that led the majority of the justices to the conclusion.

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I had all but resolved to let the Terri Schiavo story go over the weekend. But here we are again, now facing a two-pronged tragedy.

First of all, there’s the painful tragedy of Terri’s dehydration and starvation, all too graphically described by Nat Hentoff in today’s Washington Times. Some who disagree might choose to listen to Hentoff rather than to me, unless it has been deemed that he has also joined the “radical religious right-wing” conspiracy.

The other tragedy is the one of near anarchy brought forward so clearly by Captain Ed, that his post is essential reading today for those of the center-right persuasion: especially supporters of Terri’s right to live. I agree with Ed that Randall Terry has begun hijacking this case for some other agenda since this is no longer about the family’s wishes. The mobs have taken over in their demands to reinsert the feeding tube, but Ed also linked to an interesting CNN story describing the Revolutionary Communist Youth Brigade’s own rabid counter-demonstrations. This is getting out of hand now.

I’m not sure what to say to do now that Judge Greer, in the dogmatic rush to death, has left too many shadows of doubt hanging over this case which has fomented many passionate (and sadly, many extreme and illegal) responses. Maybe demand an autopsy be done – though I’m not sure how effective such demands will be. Definitely, it’s time for a national dialogue on rights of the disabled and “right-to-die” issues.

But I also think it’s time for the demonstrators to go home – at the behest of her parents, whose intimate interests as potential caregivers we do not share. As one who has supported their legal fight to keep Terri alive, I hope my voice of reason makes a difference.

This is beautiful: please read “Dear Terri.” No doubt the USMC Vietnam veteran and grandfather speaks for many.

Here’s the text of the official statement coming from U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist’s communications director regarding Senator Frist and Congressional action in the Terri Schiavo case:

“Bill Frist has helped save hundreds of lives in operating rooms throughout the world. For him a woman’s life…every life…is precious.

“Before addressing the Senate concerning Terri Schiavo last Thursday, Senator Frist carefully reviewed medical information, records, video tapes and sworn affidavits that were in the court records. He spoke with physicians involved in the case. He noted that some doctors have concluded she is not in a persistent vegetative state and could improve with therapy.

“The suggestion by some that Senator Frist was making a ‘diagnosis’ in the Schiavo case is absurd. Nowhere in his comments was he substituting his opinion for others. But with medical experts split on Terri Schiavo’s condition and a woman’s life at stake, he suggested the court solicit additional tests and attempt to reach a medical consensus on her condition. Specifically, he recommended current and complete neurological examinations, which she has not had, using the most up-to-date medical technologies.

“The fact the bill passed with bipartisan support and without dissent would indicate Republicans and Democrats alike agreed with his assessment that the courts should at the very least solicit additional medical evidence in this case. When medical facts are in dispute we should always err on the side of life.”

Good people – many with whom I frequently agree – have disagreed about this course of action. I supported the extraordinary action by Senator Frist and Congress.

Feel free to share your comments on this, though please leave out any base or cynical attacks on people’s motives and address the real issues at hand.

Hopefully you’ve been reading Bob’s Holy Week postings at The Daily Blogster, but it’s not too late to catch up if you haven’t yet.

For the accounts of Christ’s crucifixion, read Matthew 27, Mark 15, Luke 23, or John 19. It wouldn’t be a good use of space to reproduce the entire texts, and I don’t have the time to comment on them to the extent that they deserve.

However, I am going to leave this devotional thought, an old hymn text penned nearly 300 years ago by the great Isaac Watts.

“When I Survey the Wondrous Cross”

Were the whole realm of nature mine,
That were a present far too small;
Love so amazing, so divine,
Demands my soul, my life, my all.

This may be way off topic for most readers of my blog, but I thought I’d throw in this quick tidbit.

Former Indiana University basketball star and current assistant Dane Fife, 25, was just named the youngest NCAA Division I head coach when he was hired yesterday by Indiana-Purdue-Fort Wayne (IPFW). Serious basketball fans will remember Dane from the 2002 NCAA Final Four when he was one of the key contributors to a scrappy underdog Hoosier team that shocked Duke and Oklahoma to make it all the way to the finals against Maryland.

Why do I make note of Fife’s hiring? Because we both share the same hometown of Clarkston, Michigan. He’s the youngest of three sons to Clarkston High School basketball coaching legend Dan Fife – his oldest brother Dugan played at Michigan, his other brother Jeremy played at DII Grand Valley State. But Dane excelled them all and won the state’s Mr. Basketball award in 1998 before shocking many with his announcement that he was heading to Bloomington to play for Bobby Knight.

May this be the beginning of a successful head coaching career for the pride of Clarkston. Congratulations, Dane.

(Hat tip to my sports writer friend Elden.)

An important and timely reminder from Adrian Warnock, even as Terri Schiavo rests on the precarious balance between torturous suffering and consummate death: have we been looking at her estranged husband “through cross-centered eyes”? A very convicting thought and one worth reading and spreading abroad. On the one hand, we fight Michael’s agenda with fervent determination; on the other, we pray for his immortal soul.

As I read Adrian’s devotional thought, I also was reminded again of the stark and symbolic likelihood (barring some unforeseen miracle) that Terri will die on Good Friday. Not that we ultimately can compare her suffering to that of Christ’s – how can we even comprehend the metaphysical pain and horror of what it meant for Him “to become sin for us” (II Corinthians 5:21) – but that we can be reminded of our profound dependence on God’s infinite mercy and matchless grace even amidst an atrocious situation that fills many of us with a passionate and righteous anger. Of course, that anger tends to stray into the realms of the unrighteous, too. Hence the well-needed reminder. Thanks, Adrian!

I’ve been loath to comment on the intraparty Republican squabble brewing over Governor Bill Owens’ compromise budget agreement with the Democrats. But things are heating up, reports the Rocky Mountain News today. Apparently the governor is unhappy with the House Minority Leader’s public opposition:

“When the next volume of Profiles in Courage is written, there won’t be a chapter about Joe Stengel,” Owens said. “I was amazed. He knew exactly what was in it. There were no surprises.”

Sorry, governor. I have to state my firm conviction that what you are doing is neither fiscally nor politically sound. I say that as a conservative and as a Republican, respectively. The former tells me that approving this deal means $1,500 more in taxes paid by the average family of four over the next five years. The latter tells me that approving this deal gives the Democrats a powerful advantage and tremendous leverage in their campaign to hold on to control of the state legislature in 2006.

My stance shouldn’t surprise many who know me. But it doesn’t hurt working for the Independence Institute, either. In case you hadn’t heard, my boss Jon Caldara has squared off with the governor over TABOR, Amendment 23, and the budget compromise deal on an episode of Independent Thinking that was videotaped today and will air tomorrow. You won’t want to miss it, so if you have to be gone, set your VCR or Tivo:

When: Friday, 8:30 p.m.
Where: KBDI-Channel 12

Update, Friday, 10:00 a.m.:
More on the governor and his exchange with Caldara from Jim Tankersley in this morning’s Rocky Mountain News.

Thinking about a poignant, powerful, complex case that has engaged and deeply moved so many Americans, some words of reflection.

I do not want to believe in America in 2005 that:

What I want to believe only makes me feel better – it doesn’t deal with the truth. The truth is, as I have learned, that:

It saddens me greatly to see:

Finally, I’m not surprised to see:

Today I pray for Terri, her family, the US Supreme Court, the governor of Florida, my family, my friends, and for my own spiritual condition.

James 5:16
The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.

Due to time constraints, I’m just going to post a few links on Terri Schiavo, must reads for this morning:

Blogs for Terri has all the updates on the case and a list of Florida state senators you can contact to make the last-minute plea.

Now that the Appeals Court has rejected the Schindlers plea under the clear directives of Congress, Hugh muses if Judge Kennedy will cite the Groningen Protocol as precedent in a potential US Supreme Court decision.

Ray, the Informed Christian, reminds us that regardless of the outcome for Terri, we need to take to heart one of the key lessons already learned: get the courts under control!

Finally, Joe Carter at Evangelical Outpost prompts social conservatives to take a more somber, introspective look at the ramifications of not doing enough to fight no-fault divorce laws.

Good day! And keep praying!

The dialogue continues because the critic continues to raise interesting and worthwhile objections. And I thought I’d use this public space again to address them (his comments in italics):

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Denver’s mainstream media has begun to take serious notice of Hugh Hewitt’s desire to become the next president of CU:

Hewitt says CU needs a president who can do a good PR job for the school.

“I’ve been a professor for 10 years at Chapman University Law School so I know about faculties, but I think the most important thing is that you listen to the public,” Hewitt said. “You be aware of what they expect out of the university and you communicate that to the people who make up the faculty and you take care of the students.”

The endorsement of the Rocky Mountain Alliance, though currently delayed, is soon forthcoming. Maybe we’ll have to consider just how serious The Chancellor of the Collegiate Peaks is about seeking this job.