m******1 发帖数: 19713 | 1 One-hundred thirty members of Congress filed a joint amicus brief supportive
of a lesbian couple challenging the so-called Defense of Marriage Act in
court.
Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, and all four openly gay members of the House,
representatives Tammy Baldwin, Barney Frank, David Cicilline, and Jared
Polis signed the brief released Tuesday for Golinski v. Office of Personnel
Management. Karen Golinski, a federal court employee, sued the government
after being denied equal spousal benefits for her wife that her colleagues
in heterosexual marriages have access to under Section 3 of DOMA.
The brief argues that Section 3 of DOMA undermines Congress's legitimate
interests, while also arguing that Section 3 is harmful because it was a
clear, discriminatory strike against LGBT people and same-sex couples.
The Department of Justice recently asked the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the
Golinski case, along with Massachusetts v. Department of Health and Human
Services. The House’s Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group (BLAG), with Pelosi
and Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer strongly objecting, hired outside lawyers to
defend DOMA in court under the direction of Speaker John Boehner.
The brief also states that the BLAG lawyers do not speak for the entire
House, and that not all representatives agree on the validity of DOMA. | m******8 发帖数: 2153 | | D**S 发帖数: 24887 | 3 The more the better.
I am curious which Republican representatives joined this effort and which
Democratic representatives did not. |
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