From Raw Story:
The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday declined to extend a stay sought by Florida officials defending the state’s ban on same-sex marriages, allowing gay marriages to proceed in Florida next month.
Weddings would be allowed to start on Jan. 6 under an order by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta earlier this month.
Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas dissented from the Supreme Court’s decision.
Florida will be either the 35th or 36th state to legalize same-sex marriage, depending on whether or not Gov. Brownshirt in Kansas decides to obey the law.
7:34 PM PT: In my judgement, this is the most significant development in marriage equality since the October 6 denial of certiorari. Here's why:
The 11th Circuit has not yet ruled on the constitutionality of marriage bans. They could uphold them. So even though Florida has an avenue of appeal with a realistic chance of winning, the Supreme Court has said that they are happy for marriage equality to become legal without an appeal. In the cases of Kansas and South Carolina, the states were appealing to circuits that had already ruled favorably, and the Supreme Court had let those rulings go into effect. So, there was no point staying those rulings. But this District Court ruling was made without appellate court precedent, and SCOTUS let it go into effect anyway. They must be very sure of how they will rule.
Tue Dec 23, 2014 at 2:57 PM PT: To "John2046" and "RareE": If you read this, please answer:
a) Are you serious, or joking; and, if you are serious:
b) What the hell are you doing here?