Leaky Mel

Florida Senator Mel Martinez's office called the Terry Schiavo situation "a great political issue." It isn't the cynicism in the memo that is shocking. Issues are reduced to political formulae all the time. What is shocking, however is the hypocrisy in that memo. Conservatives have tried to paint those who sided with Mr. Schiavo as immoral, part of the "culture of death." The memo trumpeted the Schiavo affair as "a great political issue ... and a tough issue for Democrats." To me, though, there is nothing more anti-life than trying to make political hay a legitimate dispute over end-of-life issues. If the politics didn't appear right, I guess Mr. Martinez's office wouldn't have given the Schindlers the time of day. What's lost in this is Mel's yellow-bellied description of how the memo turned up in the first place. Here's the CNN.com description:

Martinez, in his statement, said Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, had asked for background information on the bill ordering a federal court to review the Schiavo case. He said he pulled a one-page document from his coat pocket and handed to Harkin. "Unbeknownst to me ... I had given him a copy of the now infamous memo." He said Harkin had called him earlier Wednesday to say he believes the memo had been given to him by Martinez. The Florida senator said he then ordered an internal investigation in his office.

Boy, it's too bad a U.S. Senator can't keep his papers straight. I can see the headline now, "With Egg on Face, Senator Martinez Scrambles to Poach Aide."