mr. speaker , i thank the gentleman for yielding me this time . 
mr. speaker , i am a cosponsors of the weldon legislation . 
i respect his opinion as a floridian and as a doctor , but i am also a cosponsor of the sensenbrenner legislation , as i respect his lead and opinion as a jurist , a lawyer , and as someone who knows the 14th amendment . 
and i do believe there is a question about the 14th amendment , due process , being followed or not . 
here is what we do know . 
terri is not a pvs , someone in a permanent vegetative state . 
florida has a legal definition of this and it states that one has to be permanent or irreversibly unconscious , with no voluntary or cognitive behavior of any kind , and without ability to communicate . 
terri is able to laugh , she is able to cry , and she , apparently , can hear . 
she responds to stimuli , such as voices , touch , and people . 
six neurologists and eight medical professionals have testified that she is not pvs , even though her husband has discontinued valuable therapy now for nearly 10 years . 
terri is not terminally ill . 
she is not in the process of dying . 
she is not on a respirator , she is not on dialysis , she is not on a pacemaker or any other 24-hour medical equipment . 
she is not in a coma . 
and although parts of her brain are permanently damaged , she is not brain dead . 
removing the feeding tube simply kills her by starvation and dehydration . 
terri did not have a living will . 
even though her husband has now stated that she would have wanted to die , he withheld this information for 9 years and never came forth with it until the state law in florida said they would now allow hearsay evidence for living wills . 
but up until then , there was nothing from her husband . 
after the heart attack and chemical reaction in 1990 , she was taking therapy . 
and , in fact , she was able to speak and communicate to some degree until 1993 , when he discontinued the therapy . 
mr. speaker , if there is a split decision , we should go with the 14th amendment and the desire of the parents . 
