Will Obama Step Into Supreme Court Gay Marriage Cases?

With a week to go before the deadline for filing a brief in the DOMA and Proposition 8 cases now before the U.S. Supreme Court the speculation of whether the Obama Justice Department will file briefs urging the striking down of both DOMA and Proposition 8 is intensifying as the speculation of how broadly the Court would be struck down.  With majorities of black, Hispanic and younger voters now supporting gay marriage the risks to the administration would seem minimal and the reality is that older, racist white voters and Christofascists will never support Obama under any circumstances. Thus, a strong pro-gay marriage brief would seem to have the benefit of underscoring the growing anti-modernity and bigotry of today's GOP without any real downside.  Here are highlights from a Virginian Pilot article that looks at the situation:

Facing heightened expectations from gay rights supporters, the Obama administration is considering urging the Supreme Court to overturn California's ban on gay marriage - a move that could have a far-reaching impact on same-sex couples across the country.

The administration has one week to file a friend-of-the-court brief with the justices outlining its opinion on the California ban, known as Proposition 8. While an administration brief alone is unlikely to sway the high court, the government's opinion does carry weight with the justices.

Opponents of the Proposition 8 ban believe the president signaled his intention to file a brief when he declared in last month's inaugural address that gays and lesbians must be "treated like anyone else under the law." An administration official said Obama - a former constitutional law professor - was not foreshadowing any legal action in his remarks and was simply restating his personal belief in the right of gays and lesbians to marry, though the official said the administration was considering filing a brief.

Solicitor General Donald Verrilli is consulting with the White House on the matter, according to a senior administration official, who spoke only on condition of anonymity because the official was not authorized to address the private deliberations publicly.

While the Justice Department would make the filing, the president is almost certain to make the ultimate decision on whether to do so.

"I have to make sure that I'm not interjecting myself too much into this process, particularly when we're not a party to the case," Obama said Wednesday in an interview with San Francisco's KGO-TV.

Seeking to capitalize on growing public support for gay marriage, advocates are calling on the administration to file a broad brief not only asking the court to declare California's ban unconstitutional but also urging the justices to make all state bans illegal.

"If they do make that argument and the court accepts it, the ramifications could be very sweeping," said Richard Socarides, an attorney and advocate.

The administration could also file a narrower brief that would ask the court to issue a decision applying only to California. Or it could decide not to weigh in on the case at all.

The Supreme Court, which will take up the case on March 26, has several options for its eventual ruling. Among them:

- Uphold the state ban on gay marriage and say citizens of a state have the right to make that call.

- Endorse an appeals court ruling that would make same-sex marriage legal in California but apply only to that state.

- Issue a broader ruling that would apply to California and seven other states: Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon and Rhode Island. In those states, gay couples may join in civil unions that have all the benefits of marriage but may not be married.

- Rule that the Constitution forbids states from banning same-sex unions.

Last month, Theodore Olson and David Boies, lawyers arguing for gay marriage, met with Verrilli and other government lawyers to urge the administration to file a brief in the case. A few days later, Charles Cooper, the lawyer defending Proposition 8, met with the solicitor general to ask the government to stay out of the case. Those kinds of meetings are typical in a high court case when the government is not a party and is not asked by the court to make its views known.

Boies and Chad Griffin, president of the advocacy group Human Rights Campaign, also had a meeting at the White House on the case.

Ahead of next week's deadline, nearly two dozen states have filed briefs with the court asking the justices to uphold the California measure.

Obviously, I hope Obama pushes his administration to file a brief and make the argument that the U. S. Constitution bars states from banning same sex civil law marriage.  With France and Britain on the verge of approving gay marriage and the recent Mexican Supreme Court ruling, to argue such a position is increasingly in the mainstream.  It is the Christofascists and gay-haters who no longer represent the mainstream.