Lisa Dazols (R) and Jenny Chang celebrate after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on California's Proposition 8 and the federal Defense of Marriage Act, outside the city hall in San Francisco.
Although the Supreme Court
struck down Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act—the section requiring the Federal government to discriminate against legally married same-sex couples—it did not directly address Section 2, which allows states to to refuse to recognize those marriages.
The breadth of the ruling may suggest that in a future challenge the court would also strike down Section 2, but it just wasn't the issue they ruled on yesterday. That means Section 2 continues to be law, and Democrats are already planning legislation to finish the job of repealing DOMA. Will Republicans support those efforts? Ha! Of course not:
The legislation will face enormous barriers in Congress, where Republicans wasted little time Wednesday criticizing the decision.
“I firmly believe that preserving the institution of traditional marriage is crucial to the stability of our society and serves the best interest of American families," Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, said in a statement. "Today’s decision is certainly a setback for the traditional values that make up the backbone of our country.”
Republicans are caught in a pickle here. On the one hand, their religious conservative base
simply won't let them join with Democrats to support equality. On the other hand, they don't want to respond to the ruling like they did in 2004, branding themselves as the party against marriage equality. Their solution appears to be to try to punt.
For example:
Even Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La., the chairman of the Republican Study Committee, didn’t indicate an immediate appetite for pursuing a legislative remedy.
“The Supreme Court has commandeered the role of voters and their elected representatives, and turned the definition of marriage over to unelected judges where this will now be litigated in the courts for years to come,” he said.
With statements like that, Republicans are trying to simultaneously pander to their base while avoiding a commitment to new legislation designed to combat equality. Unlike past election cycles, Republicans
don't want to make 2014 be about their anti-equality agenda.
But here's the thing: Even if Republicans want to punt, they aren't the only game in town. This isn't 2004—Democrats aren't adopting a defensive posture. They are pushing for equality, not just on marriage but also in workplace discrimination. And even if they don't push a single bill of their own, Republicans are going to need to decide whether they want to continue standing in the way of progress.
Please join us and call on Congress to finish the job that the Supreme Court started yesterday. Sign the petition to pass The Respect For Marriage Act and support full marriage equality.
