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07/08/2009
Massachusetts Sues Over DOMA
Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley (pictured) filed a 32-page lawsuit Wednesday against the U.S. government, seeking federal marriage benefits for 16,000 legally-wed gay and lesbian couples. At issue is the constitutionality of Section 3 the Defense of Marriage Act, recently notoriously defended by the Department of Justice.
The suit states that DOMA, termed "overreaching and discriminatory," interferes with the state's "sovereign authority to define and regulate marriage."
"We view all married persons equally," Coakley said at a press conference today.
The basis for the suit is the 10th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and Section 8 of the Constitution. Along with the United States itself, defendants include the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Veterans' Affairs.
Another suit by Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) targeting DOMA is also in the works. GLAD's Janson Wu says, "We applaud the Commonwealth's decision to seek to protect its married citizens from the harms caused by federal discrimination."
Posted 3:21 PM EST by Matthew Rettenmund in DOMA, Massachusetts | Permalink
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Billyboy,
Thanks for that. I wasn't saying that you personally were praising Martha Coakley,only that some people were. Gavin, if you remember, was considered a major hero when he first started allowing marriages in San Francisco. Although you might be right that he ultimately created more problems for marriage here, there is no question that the marriage case would have never gotten to the CA Supreme Court without him doing what he did. And, did you ever hear "why" he did in the first place? He was reacting to GW Bush's State of the Union address where he announced he was supporting a US Constitutional ban on gay marriage. It infuriated Gavin so much that he came back and started issuing licenses to same sex couples. So, in reality, I should thank Bush for my marriage! Don't worry, I already sent him a Thank You note!
Posted by: Dan | Jul 10, 2009 2:31:12 AM
One more point, let's say that something terrible were to happen in Maine in September (god forbid), and we lose marriage equality to a vote. Will people blame the legislature and governor for producing the bill that allowed marriage? I would hope not. There is no question that the vote is being brought as a backlash to the bill. This is similar to the situation with Gavin. Again I repeat: he cannot be blamed for the ignorance of the California electorate. Theoretically, the equality we have achieved in every state could be reversed by a vote. Are we to sit back and blame the means by which we got it in the first place?
Posted by: Dan | Jul 10, 2009 2:35:58 AM