The Terri Schiavo case has produced something rarely, if ever, seen in Congress: legislation that applies to one person.

Is this media-hyped, end-of-life spectacle so extraordinary that it must become a federal matter? If the bill had any public policy ramifications for other people in such quandaries, one could make that case. But it doesn’t. All it does is give the parents of the brain-damaged woman entrée to federal courts to continue a battle they’ve repeatedly lost in the Florida courts.

Bill supporters say it applies only to this case, a sure sign of bad legislation. Thousands of Americans have loved ones on life support. Some of those cases involve family disputes, none of which will end up in Congress.

President Bush cut his Easter vacation short to sign the bill. Politicians circulated a memo noting that the Schiavo controversy presented a winning issue. Opponents of intervention laid low for fear of being run over by an emotional steamroller.

In short, our national leaders have played politics with a tragedy. Fortunately, the American people appear to see right through them. Polls show that Americans are overwhelmingly opposed to congressional intervention. Not only are a majority of conservative Republicans against the legislation, they support Schiavo’s husband, who does not want her feeding tube reinserted.

Conservative activists are undeterred, because they see the dispute as an important “culture of life” issue. Bush himself said we should err on the side of life, but why aren’t politicians intervening in other end-of-life cases?

A Houston hospital recently unplugged the respirator on a young boy in a persistent vegetative state despite his mother’s objections. That’s because Texas law allows health-care providers to make the ultimate call if the chief guardian cannot pay for life-sustaining measures. The mother begged for her son’s life. No activists or politicians joined her battle.

The Schiavo case is a difficult personal matter that is being exploited by activists, politicians and the media. There is no right answer, but Florida law says the husband has the final call. Numerous judges have looked at the case and decided that the law has been followed. The Florida Legislature has decided not to change the law.

Because of a bill signed by Bush when he was governor, a Schiavo-type case would proceed in Texas just the way it has in Florida. It would be bad enough if the feds tried to dictate guardianship rules to the states, but to do so in a single case is audacious.

The only positive aspect to this drama is that more people are discussing end-of-life issues and considering living wills. That’s wise, because there’s no guarantee that politicians won’t make that decision for you.