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(85,919 posts)
Tue Mar 26, 2013, 08:52 AM Mar 2013

Historic Day Today

tweeted by, Robert Barnes ?@scotusreporter 2h

Historic day for gay rights at #scotus; boldest request for marriage comes in arguments today http://wapo.st/ZT3YtF

_____ A four-year legal battle to extend the right of marriage to same-sex couples no matter where they live gets its moment before the Supreme Court on Tuesday in historic oral arguments difficult to imagine even a decade ago.

The first of two days of oral arguments over what supporters call marriage equality brings the boldest of the claims that gay rights activists will make — that there is a constitutional right to same-sex marriage that states may not deny . . .




Greg Sargent ?@ThePlumLineGS 1h
ICYMI: How a broad SCOTUS ruling could transform the national landscape on gay rights: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/wp/2013/03/25/will-scotus-transform-the-national-landscape-on-gay-rights/

The Supreme Court hearing on Proposition 8 — which will be argued (today) — has the potential to transform the national civil rights landscape for gay and lesbian Americans. More so than the case involving the Defense of Marriage Act, the Prop 8 ruling could ultimately result in marriage equality being the law of the land everywhere in the United States.

Gay rights advocates will be closely watching how Justice Anthony Kennedy frames his questions about what a broad SCOTUS ruling means for the states. If Kennedy appears uncomfortable with the implications of a broad ruling, that could — repeat, could — mean trouble. Kennedy is seen as the swing vote on the court, partly because he came down on the side of gay rights in Lawrence v. Texas, which struck down a state anti-sodomy law, and Romer v. Evans, which struck down a Colorado measure prohibiting localities from recognizing gays and lesbians as a protected class.

There are two ways SCOTUS could reach broad rulings with far reaching implications for gay rights. The first would be if the Court found a fundamental Constitutional right to marry, as it did in Loving v. Virginia, which struck down a state law forbidding interracial marriage, and other rulings. (This is what Ted Olson and David Boise, the lead lawyers for the plaintiffs, have argued.) The second would be if the Court found that laws that discriminate must pass a “heightened scrutiny” test — i.e. their rationale must be subjected to an extremely high standard — and that this scrutiny reveals that Prop 8 violates the Constitution’s equal protection clause. (This is what Obama’s solicitor general has argued.)

Either of these rulings would be historic, and could be used as a weapon to topple other state laws banning gay marriage as unconstitutional. So watch the discussions about the implications of such a ruling. If Kennedy asks whether ruling that way would be dictating on an issue that’s very sensitive to the states and short circuiting the political process, that could signal discomfort with going the broad route. On the other hand, Kennedy might also want to give Prop 8 opponents a chance to explain why such a ruling is legally defensible. Look for them to argue that this would not be an imposition of anything on the states, but rather that the states don’t have the authority to impose on gays who want to get married by depriving them of their constitutional rights.

It’s also possible that the Court could opt for a narrower ruling . . .


read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/a-historic-moment-for-same-sex-marriage-arrives-before-supreme-court/2013/03/25/c8d85442-95ad-11e2-b6f0-a5150a247b6a_story.html?hpid=z1


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Historic Day Today (Original Post) bigtree Mar 2013 OP
determined to share this important day here bigtree Mar 2013 #1
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