William Duncan: Fifteen States Come to DOMA’s Defense
August 16, 2012 at 11:00 am
William C. Duncan in National Review's The Corner blog:
The decision of the Obama administration to change sides in the litigation over the Defense of Marriage Act got lots of mainstream press attention. The recent decision of 15 states to proactively file a brief supporting the Defense of Marriage Act at the U.S. Supreme Court has not gotten the same attention. That’s too bad, because the states’ brief makes some important arguments.
The states point out that the decision the Court is being asked to review creates a legal standard out of whole cloth and that if the circuit court’s analysis were taken seriously, it would require not only the invalidation of DOMA but of every marriage law in the United States. This latter point is crucial. DOMA may be the specific target now, but the litigation over it (and the related litigation over Proposition 8 ) is, ultimately, about establishing a new constitutional approach to marriage laws (similar to the context specific standards that have arisen in order to protect the “right” to abortion) that could be used to mandate redefinition in every state.
6 Comments
NOM better get to work on their REI boycott.
Which fifteen?
?
My mistake. Misread the second post.
Fifteen states ask the Supreme Court to review DOMA
August 9, 2012
By Scottie Thomaston
The state of Indiana filed an amicus brief with fourteen other states in the Gill case, challenging Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act. The case has reached the Supreme Court through petitions for certiorari by the Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group (BLAG) who is defending the law on behalf of House Republicans after the Justice Department decided it would no longer defend Section 3, and through a petition by the Justice Department itself. The state of Massachusetts, whose case is consolidate with Gill at the appellate level, has also filed a petition for certiorari
Indiana, Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Michigan, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, and Virginia signed onto the brief . . . .
http://www.prop8trialtracker.com/2012/08/09/fifteen-states-ask-the-supreme-court-to-review-doma/
Indiana, Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Michigan, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, and Virginia.