Wackjob Pat Robertson told viewers of The 700 Club that this summer’s ruling from SCOTUS on same-sex marriage only affects a few couples who were involved in the actual case itself, and that unless Congress passes a law making marriage equality legal, it’s not really the law of the land.
“In the legal system, party A sues party B over marriage, ‘I want to get married to them,’ and the court says, ‘Okay, you can get married,’” he explained. “That doesn’t mean that I’ve got to get married to homosexuals, it doesn’t mean that you have to nor does it mean that it’s the law of the land. Congress didn’t pass any law. Your state legislature didn’t pass a law. So you’re not under anything, it’s a decision of the court having to do with a couple of people. Now they would like to make it bigger than that but, in terms of the Constitution, it isn’t.”
Trust and believe, the Obergefell ruling struck down all the anti-gay marriage laws in the U.S. That IS how the law works here.
Dalan Wells (L) and Marine Sergeant Brandon Morgan (R)
You may remember this photo above from February 2012, when Marine Sergeant Brandon Morgan was welcomed home by his boyfriend of four years, Dalan Wells, at a Marines Corp Base in Hawaii.
Seeing Wells, Morgan jumped into his boyfriend’s arms and the moment was captured for the world to see.
Two days later, after the shot was posted to a Facebook page for Gay Marines, the pic had over 18,000 “Likes,” and the couple was famous.
Many felt the pic represented the progress gays and lesbians have made in the military as “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” had ended just six months before.
A year after the photo took the internet by storm, Morgan proposed to Wells.
The happy story comes full circle as we get the news that hunky and inspiring couple got married last weekend in Honeoye Falls, New York.
At a campaign appearance at Cornell College in Iowa, Democratic front runner Hillary Clinton was asked “What would you do about somebody if they were to do something like what Kim Davis did recently?”
The question, of course, was in reference to the rogue Kentucky County Clerk who refused to follow the recent SCOTUS ruling on same-sex marriage and issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.
“I think what happened to Kim Davis was the right thing,” Clinton replied. “She violated the law, and therefore she was arrested. And when she was released, she had to agree that she would not stand in the way of doing her public duty under the Constitution.
“So I actually think that she was treated as she should have been treated,” Clinton continued, before affirming that “people are totally entitled to their personal, private beliefs.”
But that entitlement doesn’t give anyone, especially elected public officials with a taxpayer-funded salary, the right to disobey the law of the land, Clinton added.
“When you take an oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States, that is your job,” she said. “Whether you agree with a decision or not, we have the rule of law. You have to follow the law. … You either enforce the law or you resign from your public position. That is exactly what should have happened.”
Jim Obergefell, whose lawsuit led to the historic U.S. Supreme Court ruling in favor of marriage equality, has penned an open letter to Kentucky County Clerk Kim Davis regarding her opposition to issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples in her county.
Via the ACLU:
“As you may know, when you fall in love with someone, you hand your heart and soul over to them. Anyone who has committed to sharing their life with another human and forming a family unit knows that it is the biggest and most rewarding adventure you will ever take. You know that all of the laughs and all of the tears won’t fall on the echo of an empty room, but will instead be received in the warm embrace of someone who has pledged to see you at your best and love you at your worst. You know that person is there to help pick you up on those days when the odds are stacked against you. You know that you never have to do the dishes alone.
“When I met John, I had no idea that I would spend the next two decades building a life with the man who would one day inspire me to demand our right to be recognized by our country. I earned the right to lawfully call him my husband, just as you have a right to call your husband such. Love transcends gender. You’re imposing the same indignities on couples in Rowan County that John and I suffered when Ohio would not legally recognize us as a married couple. Thankfully, the law is now changed so that nobody should ever have to experience the injustice that John and I endured. No one is above the law, Kim, not even you.
“I joined the fight to have our love treated equally precisely because our love is equal. The love that any family shares is no more or less worthy than that of any other, and it’s not fair for you, or anyone, to judge. It’s your job to simply do your job. Issuing a marriage license at work is not a personal endorsement of my marriage any more than recording a deed is an endorsement of my home ownership.
“It’s simply following the rules in this civil society in which we’ve all agreed to be members. What truly matters is the kindness and compassion we share with our families and with those around us. Love makes a family. And as of June 2015 the federal government agrees. I did not fight for my right to call John my husband in vain. I stand today in his memory and proudly declare him my legally wedded spouse. Do not stand in the way of others seeking their legal right to have their love recognized. Sincerely, Jim Obergefell for ACLU Action.”
“One of their leading candidates argued that going to prison turns you gay,” he said, referring to neurosurgeon Ben Carson, who has recently surged in the polls. “Well, you think I’m — I shouldn’t go into this? No, I mean, I’m just stating the facts.”
“Another candidate boasts that he introduced an amendment to end nationwide marriage equality — which isn’t even an accomplishment at all. A third says Americans should just disobey the Supreme Court’s ruling entirely. I’m sure he loves the Constitution — except for Article III. And maybe the Equal Protection Amendment. And the 14th Amendment, generally.”
The President made a point of listing several advances in LGBT rights since he took office such as overturning the military’s ban on openly gay soldiers, his executive order banning workplace discrimination against LGBT individuals employed by the federal government and federal contractors, as well as this year’s Supreme Court’s ruling legalizing gay marriage nationwide.
Obama also chided the GOP world for their chants of “taking their country back.” Obama addressed the idea of “taking the country back” to 2008 before he was elected president:
“In their world, everything was terrific back in 2008 when we were in the midst of a spiral into the worst financial crisis and economic crisis since the Great Depression, when unemployment and uninsured rates were rising and when our economy was shedding jobs each month, and we were mired in two wars, hopelessly addicted to foreign oil, and bin Laden was still at large,” Obama said.
“Those were the Golden Years, apparently. And then, I came in and messed it all up.”
Introducing the President for the evening was lead plaintiff in the SCOTUS same-sex marriage case, Jim Obergefell.
Democratic front runner Hillary Clinton, speaking to Chuck Todd on NBC News’’ “MEET THE PRESS” addressed her evolution on marriage equality:
“On same-sex marriage, like a lot of people, including our president, I did evolve. And I was not raised to even imagine this.
And I’m thrilled now that it is the law of the land. And I have a lot of good friends who are now able to be married because of the changes we’ve made legally and constitutionally.”
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert went after the still-lingering crazies who think they will turn back the clock on marriage equality last night.
“Folks, gay marriage is still a controversial issue in this country, despite the fact that it’s not…”
“I think everyone should love whoever they want. “So, I was miffed when Kentucky County Clerk and forehead magnate Kim Davis refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. But I also felt bad for her when that judge sent her to jail and even worse when she was sentenced to send an afternoon with Mike Huckabee. It’s cruel and unusual,” he joked. With that in mind, Colbert introduced his own line of “all-inclusive wedding cake toppers.”
Professional martyr and occasional County Clerk Kim Davis sat down with Fox News’ Megyn Kelly to talk about her ongoing refusal to follow the law when it comes to issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples.
You’ll note that when directly asked if other non-Christian faiths should receive similar exemptions to the one she’s demanding, she sidesteps the question: “You have millions of Christians who object to this whole same-sex marriage issue. Are their rights invalid? Are their rights not worth anything?”
She also mentions that there’s “no way” she would issue a marriage license to her own child if they were to come out as gay or lesbian.
However, Davis went on to say that she “loves all people. I have love in my heart for everyone.”
Sen. Ted Cruz dropped by The Late Show with Stephen Colbert to discuss the idea of compromise in politics (a la Reagan) and of course, same-sex marriage.
Cruz got a somewhat chilly response from the audience, which I’m sure Cruz expected to some degree given Colbert’s audience. But when it came to talking on marriage equality, he actually garnered some boos.
When a few audience members began to boo the White House hopeful, Colbert asked for their respect and gave Cruz the last word.
“The 10th Amendment states that if the Constitution doesn’t mention it, it’s a question for the states,” said Cruz, a Harvard law graduate who once clerked for Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist.
“I don’t think we should entrust governing our society to five unelected lawyers in Washington.”
On his last line, Cruz received some applause, which largely eluded him throughout the interview. “If you want to win an issue, go to the ballot box and win at the ballot box,” he said. “That’s the way the Constitution was designed.”
You’ll note that Cruz makes a point of lessening the level of respect that should be afforded the Supreme Court Justices by always referring to them as “unelected lawyers,” not “judges” or “justices.”
Kentucky County Clerk Kim Davis, who continues to refuse to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples over “religious beliefs,” may have more legal troubles.
Davis, the County Clerk for Rowan County, was famously taken into custody when she refused to follow a federal court order (and the law) regarding issuance of marriage licenses. She was released from jail on the condition that she would not interfere in any way with her deputies issuing licenses.
It would appear that she may not have held to her end of that bargain.
The lawyer for Deputy Clerk Brian Mason brought that issue to U.S. District Court Judge David Bunning’s attention on Friday, noting that it “appears to this counsel those changes were made in some attempt to circumvent the court’s orders and may have raised to the level of interference against the court’s orders.”
When Bunning released Davis from jail on his contempt order, he released her on the condition that she not interfere with the issuance of licenses.
In Friday’s filing, Mason’s lawyer added that his client’s concern is that “he does not want to be the party that is issuing invalid marriage licenses.” He also noted that Mason “is trying to follow the court’s mandate, as well as his superior [Davis] ordering him to issue only these changed forms.”
One of many questions unanswered at this point is whether Davis has the authority to change a legal state form.
