Obama administration asks Supreme Court to strike down Defense of Marriage Act

[ProSense]

Obama administration asks Supreme Court to strike down Defense of Marriage Act

by Kaili Joy Gray

This is a very welcome Friday news dump:

The Obama administration urged the Supreme Court to strike down the Defense of Marriage Act's prohibition on recognition of same-sex couples' marriages in a Friday filing, arguing that laws that target gay people should face additional scrutiny by courts reviewing them.

You can read the full brief here.

Equality is coming, no matter how many marches the bigots organize. And it's certainly nice to see the White House take a strong stand to be on the right side of history. You can help make it a reality in Oregon too, by donating to Oregon United for Marriage.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/02/22/1189180/-Obama-administration-asks-Supreme-Courts-to-strike-down-Defense-of-Marriage-Act

Full brief: http://www.scribd.com/doc/126830274/US-Merits-Brief-Windsor

[MotherPetrie]

1. GOOD.

[putitinD]

2. FOREWARD is not just a campaign slogan

[Cha]

3. Great New that they asked.. thanks

ProSense!

[msanthrope]

4. One more small step towards equality. nt

[SidDithers]

5. Huge K&R!!...nt

Sid

[sheshe2]

6. Kick and Recommend! nt

[iandhr]

7. Another step toward progress.

[SidDithers]

8. Kick...nt

Sid

[spanone]

9. k&r...

[one_voice]

10. K&R

Where are all the negative nellies?

15 fucking threads on the same negative shit, not one comment here.

[jazzimov]

11. enthusiastic K&R!

[one_voice]

12. .

[ProSense]

13. Kick! n/t

[Ruby the Liberal]

14. Can someone explain to the legal-illiterate over here what this means?

I am familiar with the Estate of Thea Spyer case, but is this filing proactive or reactive - basically, is this the government stepping in before SCOTUS hears the case or in response to the fact that it has been accepted for hearing?

[stevenleser]

16. It's almost entirely symbolic, but it might make the difference too, one never knows.

It's the filing of what is called an amicus brief, "amicus" being related to the latin word for friend.

The brief is considered by the Supreme Court when they evaluate the two LGBT marriage cases before the SCOTUS this session. The justices can completely disregard it if they choose, or put whatever weight they want to what the administration's brief says.

Could it make the difference in one or two swing justices minds? It might. But it might not. Still, in terms of a case like these going before the SCOTUS, not much else can be done by the administration. They have already decided not to defend DOMA in these cases.

[Ruby the Liberal]

18. Got it - I think

So this brief IS proactive, speaking to the administrations desire on the outcome. Hopefully, I understood that.

Last I heard, wasn't the GOP House caucus stepping up to defend DOMA because the administration won't - or do I have that twisted as well? Sorry - been VERY busy the last few months and am really out of touch with how this case, the MA case and Prop 8 are progressing. Thanks for helping.

[stevenleser]

19. Correct House GOP are the ones defending DOMA in the estate case. In the Prop 8 case, the defenders

are a motley crue of pro Proposition 8 groups who the SCOTUS may even decide right off the bat do not have standing. If anyone is defending prop 8, it should be the government of the state of California. The Governor and state attorney general's office refuse to defend Prop 8 because they are Democrats who are against prop 8.

If the SCOTUS decides that the group defending prop 8 do not have standing, that case could be over before real arguments begin with the result being Prop 8 is permanently shot down.

[Ruby the Liberal]

20. Interesting.

Wasn't aware of that development. I like!

Thanks Steven!

[stevenleser]

15. K&R nt

[RudynJack]

17. Excellent!

I didn't expect it, but President Obama has been a great proponent of gay rights. I'm very pleased.

[DevonRex]

21. Here's a PDF link:

Just in case you prefer that format.
http://sblog.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/US-merits-brief-Windsor-2-22-12.pdf
Great news. He hit every point possible. It's a very good amicus brief. And how the hell is amicus not in our dictionary?

[ProSense]

22. Thanks. n/t