Schiavo Fight Hits Home for 2 Congressmen
By DONNA DE LA CRUZ, Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON - The fight for Terri Schiavo's life hit home for two congressmen from New Jersey. Republican Chris Smith and Democrat Rush Holt both have confronted a decision to remove a loved one from life support, and now find themselves on opposite sides of the issue in the Schiavo case.
Smith voted for — and Holt against — a bill that allows Schiavo's parents the right to sue in federal court over the withdrawal of nourishment and medical treatment needed to sustain their daughter, who suffered severe brain damage 15 years ago.
On Monday, the congressmen spoke of the pain involved in such a decision.
"It was one of the hardest moments of my life," Smith said of the day his cancer-stricken father was removed from a respirator in 1996. Bernard Smith died within minutes, Smith said. "It got to the point where the cancer was everywhere, he had no hope, as we were told by a number of doctors," Smith said.
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