New York Times Calls for Lifting of Prop. 8 Ruling Stay

The list of major news outlets calling on the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals to lift the stay of Judge Walker's ruling in Perry v. Schwarzenegger striking down Proposition 8 as unconstitutional continues to grow. Now, the New York Times is calling for the stay to be lifted so that marriages. Indeed, the Times goes even further and states that the stay should never have been granted in the first place - a point that I agree with completely. Particularly since under existing federal court decisions the Prop 8 proponents appear to lack any standing to appeal. Here are highlights from the Times editorial:
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Seven months have passed since Proposition 8, California’s voter-approved ban on same-sex marriages, was ruled unconstitutional by a federal judge in San Francisco following a much-publicized trial that turned up no evidence to justify the measure’s denial of equal protection and due process.
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Yet the 2008 initiative continues to inflict serious harm on same-sex couples and their families thanks to a court order that prevents gay men and lesbians from marrying in California while the case is being appealed. That stay should be lifted now. *
The stay should never have been granted in the first place. Applying traditional legal criteria, the extraordinary relief of a stay is only warranted when the applicant makes a strong showing of likely success on the merits and of irreparable injury in the absence of a stay — two arguments that cannot be satisfied here.
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As the trial judge’s ruling affirmed, the denial of marriage equality furthers no legitimate governmental aim. And defenders of Proposition 8 can point to no real injury they would suffer if gay men and lesbians are permitted to wed.
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Every day same-sex couples are denied their right to marry is another day of injustice for them and their families. Couples who wish to wed knowing that the appellate court could decide to uphold Proposition 8’s ban should be allowed to take that chance.