Tag: same-sex marriage

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John Boehner: House Republicans Will Not Weigh In On SCOTUS Review Of Marriage Equality

Speaker of the House John Boehner

In a departure from previous positions on marriage equality, Speaker of the House John Boehner says House Republicans will not be filing amicus briefs or other official positions on the upcoming SCOTUS review of same-sex marriage laws.

From the Washington Blade:

U.S. House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) on Thursday declined to offer his hopes for litigation seeking marriage rights for same-sex couples before the U.S. Supreme Court, but said he doesn’t expect House Republicans will weigh in a legal capacity.

“I don’t expect that we’re going to weigh in on this,” Boehner said. “The court will make its decision and that’s why they’re there, to be the highest court in the land.”

Boehner, an opponent of same-sex marriage, made the remarks in response to a question from the Washington Blade at his weekly news conference the month after the Supreme Court agreed to hear the lawsuits, which includes a lawsuit challenging the state law in Boehner’s own state of Ohio.

Methinks Mr. Boehner and company sees the writing on the wall regarding the tide of history.

Finally.

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Michigan Will Recognize Over 300 Same-Sex Marriages Performed Last Year

Gov. Rick Snyder of Michigan announced today that the state will recognize the more than 300 same-sex marriages that occurred last year during a brief period between court rulings that brought down the state’s ban on marriage equality.

From the AP:

The Republican governor said he will not appeal a federal ruling last month that the state must recognize the marriages. U.S. District Judge Mark Goldsmith said the marriages are valid but put on hold his decision for 21 days pending any appeal by the state.

“The judge has determined that same-sex couples were legally married on that day, and we will follow the law and extend state marriage benefits to those couples,” Snyder said in a statement.

Michigan’s recognition of the marriages could affect the couples’ health insurance coverage and their ability to jointly adopt.

A different federal judge struck down Michigan’s 2004 voter-approved gay marriage ban on March 21. Same-sex couples in four counties married the next day, before an appeals court suspended the decision and blocked additional marriages.

The U.S. Supreme Court recently decided to consider the legality of bans in Michigan and three other states.

Michigan is one of four states who saw their state’s same-sex marriage bans upheld by the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals. Those rulings will be reviewed by SCOTUS in April with a ruling expected in June.

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Poll Shows 61% of Floridians Either Support Or Are Neutral On Same-Sex Marriage

A new poll shows that 61% of Floridians either support same-sex marriage or feel neutral on the subject. A minority of 37% feel the legalization of same-sex marriage is a bad thing.

The poll also shows that GOP Gov. Rick Scott’s approval numbers are upside down with 50% disapproving of the job he’s doing compared to 41% approving.

Read more at Sunshine State News.

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Alabama To SCOTUS: States Are Not In Business “To Regulate Love”

Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange filed his appeal to the U. S. Supreme Court last night in a last-ditch attempt to have the stay placed on the recent ruling striking down the state’s ban on same-sex marriage extended indefinitely.

As seen before, Strange assumes marriage laws are only about procreation. Tell that to the straight married couples who cannot or choose to not have children; or, to the senior couples who marry after child birth years.

From the AG’s appeal:

The interests supported by opposite-sex marriage are, at the very least, rational. States are not in the marriage business “to regulate love.” Instead, state marriage laws link children to their biological parents (and link these biological parents to each other) by imposing a package of privileges and obligations—such as presumptions of paternity—that make less sense in the context of same-sex relationships. It is not irrational or malicious for state laws to reflect an “awareness of the biological reality that couples of the same sex do not have children the same way as couples of opposite sexes.” It is instead the background against which the institution of marriage has developed over the last several thousand years.

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NAACP’s Julian Bond Pens Op-Ed Supporting Marriage Equality In Mississippi

In an op-ed for the Jackson Clarion-Ledger, NAACP chairman emeritus Julian Bond writes of safer spaces, civil rights and same-sex marriage in Mississippi:

“Mississippians know sexual orientation or gender identity shouldn’t matter when it comes to working hard and taking care of your neighbor. Mississippians know all children are valued, no matter who they are. And Mississippians know that above all, treating one another with dignity and respect is what counts.

“The fight for basic civil rights is not a quest for superiority or an unvoiced desire for power. It is, at its root, a battle to raise us all up. We all deserve the right to try and fail, move forward and fall back, and ultimately succeed on our own merits and individual gifts. But for many of us, our ability to dream of a greater and more brilliant future is limited by the color of our skin, the texts of our religious tomes, and the gender of whom we love and who we are.

“The push for full equality for all Americans has always come with hurdles and setbacks. But we are not dissuaded from our path. LGBT Mississippians and their families yearn for a better day, one that we can work together to create. Let’s begin right now.”

The entire essay is truly worth the read.

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Eleventh Circuit Court Of Appeals Denies Alabama’s Request To Extend Stay On Marriage Ruling

Equality Alabama tweets the news that the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals has DENIED Alabama’s request for an extension of the current stay on the ruling which strikes down a ban on same-sex marriage.

The stay is set to expire on February 9th.

Unless the U. S. Supreme Court steps in with a stay, marriage equality will begin in Alabama upon the stay’s expiration.

It should be noted that when the state of Florida went to SCOTUS with a similar extension, SCOTUS denied that request.

I expect Alabama WILL head to SCOTUS, but the answer from the Supreme’s may tell us much about how the high court is leaning to rule in June on same-sex marriage.

UPDATE: The Plaintiffs in the case have asked U.S. District Judge Granade to remove the stay now, and not wait until February 9th.

From the lawyers for cari Searcy and Kimberly McKeand:

“Plaintiffs respectfully submit that there is no reason for this Court’s stay to remain in place until February 9, 2015, as the Court made clear that this Court’s stay was to allow the Defendants time to seek relief from the Eleventh Circuit on that issue.

“The Defendants have done so, and the Eleventh Circuit has denied their motion.”

As expected, Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange has asked SCOTUS to stay the ruling, saying, “I am disappointed in the 11th U.S. Circuit Court’s decision not to stay the federal district court’s ruling.

“The confusion that has been created by the District Court’s ruling could linger for months until the U.S. Supreme Court resolves this issue once and for all.”

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Alabama Lawmaker: Gay Marriage Will Cost Too Much

Alabama state Sen. Del Marsh

Usually, the arguments against same-sex marriage take the approach of inciting to riot via “polygamy,” “incest,” Bible scripture, morality, etc…

But one GOP Alabama lawmaker is going right for the pocketbook approach – “Gay marriage will cost us money!”

Via ThinkProgress:

“You gotta look at the financial aspect of this as well,” State Sen. Del Marsh (R) told radio host Dale Jackson last week. “Let’s face it. If gay marriage is approved, I assume that those types of unions, those people would be entitled to Social Security benefits, insurance. Where does it end?”

Well, glad you asked Mr. Marsh.

It seems the Congressional Budget Office weighed the potential increased spending on Social Security and other benefits against increased savings from other programs like Medicare and Medicaid back in 2004.

The results of the study found that if every state were to legalize marriage equality, the federal budget would see a boost of approximately $10 billion over 10 years.

Additionally, specific to Alabama, the Williams Institute found that same-sex marriage would add $21.7 million to Alabama’s economy over the first three years.

So, hey – more money in the economy? What Republican doesn’t like that?

Listen to Mr. Marsh below:

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Marriage News Watch – February 2, 2015

From the American Foundation for Equal Rights:

Marriage could be starting next week in Alabama. Anti-gay officials are saying that they don’t have to let gay couples get married, but their reasoning isn’t exactly what you would call true.

Oklahoma’s marriage equality backlash is getting dangerous, with a proposed law that would hand new victims to ex-gay predators.

And the National Organization for Marriage thinks they’ll have an impact on the 2016 presidential election.

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Virginia Ordered To Pay Over $520K To Marriage Equality Lawyers

The state of Virginia has been ordered to pay $520,000 to the lawyers for two same-sex couples who successfully challenged the state’s gay marriage ban.

The law firm Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher will receive $459,000. Shuttleworth, Ruloff, Swain, Haddad & Morecock will receive $61,000.

Court papers show that attorneys logged 2,372 hours on the case. Their fees will be paid by the state Department of Treasury’s Division of Risk Management.

Virginia’s same-sex marriage ban was found to be unconstitutional last February. After unsuccessful appeals and SCOTUS refusing to review the ruling, it was a done deal.

In many states, the winning side of a lawsuit may ask for compensatory fees from the losing side.

Hope the tax payers of Virginia don’t mind losing those funds to a bigoted argument.

p.s. You will note, the sky has NOT fallen in Virginia since the passage of marriage equality.

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Fort Worth To Recognize Same-Sex Marriages

Every now and then, I really love being surprised.

And by that, I’m referring to my hometown of Fort Worth, Texas, which announced recently that it will be extending spousal benefits to same-sex couples who are legally married in other states.

The city currently offers health insurance to same-sex partners; however,  by deciding to begin treating them as spouses, those married will now be eligible for other benefits, including pension plans. The change means the city will adhere to IRS rules issued in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Windsor v. United States.

From the city’s employee newsletter:

The City of Fort Worth will be extending spousal benefits to same-sex couples beginning Feb. 1, 2015.

This change will allow the city to follow the IRS’s definition of “spouse” as defined for federal income taxes in the granting of survivor benefits.

Since the city’s retirement ordinance does not specifically define “spouse,” surviving spouses in a same-sex marriage will be eligible for survivor benefits if the survivor can prove, through documentation, that they were legally married to the employee/retiree in a state where same-sex marriage is legally recognized.

(via Towleroad)