Monday, February 13, 2006

Republican senator says he was mistaken on Schiavo debate

Nearly a year after calling for federal involvement to keep a brain-damaged woman artificially alive against her husband's wishes, Republican U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez has said it was a mistake to become involved.

Martinez, who has just completed his first year in office, led the Senate charge pushing a bill that would have given federal courts jurisdiction to reinstate Terri Schiavo's feeding tubes.

"If I had to take one lesson away, it's perhaps decisions of this nature really belong in state courts, not federal courts," Martinez said in a taped interview for "Political Connections" that aired Sunday on Bay News 9.

"Perhaps this was not in the realm of federal concern. It may have been better left to state courts to deal with it," Martinez said.

"Political Connections" is a joint venture between the St. Petersburg Times and Bay News 9.

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