D**S
发帖数: 24887 | 1 http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/02/23/172767887/obama-
by Shula Neuman
February 23, 201312:24 PM
The Obama administration is following through on its relatively newfound
support of gay marriage. On Friday, the administration filed a legal brief
with the Justice Department that urges the Supreme Court to strike down a
key part of the Defense of Marriage Act.
The brief formally asks the court to declare unconstitutional a specific
part of DOMA called Section 3. That's the part that bars recognition of same
-sex marriages for purposes of federal benefits such as income taxes or
federal employee benefits. The brief points out that there are more than 1,
000 federal statues and programs that come into play depending on a person's
marital status.
The Obama administration notes that some of these couples are legally
married so targeting them is "a harsh form of discrimination that bears no
relation to their ability to contribute to society." Moreover, it violates
the constitutional guarantee of equal protection, the brief states.
An article in Buzzfeed explains that the administration's brief argues for
heightened scrutiny of the law because it singles out gay people.
The administration's filing to the Supreme Court is not exactly a surprise.
In Obama's inaugural address last month, he stood by his position in favor
of same-sex marriage:
"Our journey is not complete until our gay brothers and sisters are treated
like anyone else under the law — for if we are truly created equal, then
surely the love we commit to one another must be equal as well."
The primary challenge to the administration's position comes from House
Republicans through the Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group (BLAG). That group
filed its own brief ealier that advocates settling the issue through the
democratic process, not through the courts.
The Obama administration's brief disputes that position, stating several
reasons why letting voters decide on the legal status of same-sex marriage
is inappropriate. It sites the long history of discrimination gays and
lesbians have faced; that sexual orientation bears no relation to the
ability to contribute to society; and that sexual orientation is a core part
of identity with broad scientific evidence that it is not a voluntary
choice. Finally, the brief states:
"Fourth, gay and lesbian people are a minority group with limited political
power. Although some of the harshest and most overt forms of discrimination
against gay and lesbian people have receded, that progress has hardly been
uniform (either temporally or geographically), and has in significant
respects been the result of judicial enforcement of the Constitution, not
political action."
In its article about the administration's brief, Politico points out that
there are concessions to the other side. The brief acknowledges that "DOMA
could pass a so-called 'rational basis' test applied to laws that don't veer
into sensitive issues like race or gender. The Justice Department also says
the law may not have been the product of 'hostile animus' against gay
people." |
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