equal rites

Justice Department Now Grudgingly Defending DOMA

Back in June, gay-rights activists were disturbed and somewhat shocked when the Justice Department defended the Defense of Marriage Act in a court filing that pretty much compared same-sex marriage to incest and child marriage. Needless to say, that’s not the message they expected to hear, especially since candidate Obama pledged to overturn DOMA. Now the Justice Department is singing a different tune — sort of. In a brief filed this morning, it stated that it “does not support DOMA as a matter of policy, believes that it is discriminatory, and supports its repeal,” and specifically knocks down the argument that children raised by gay couples will grow up to be super-gay, or something. But at the same time, Justice still maintains that it’s their unfortunate duty to defend DOMA in court regardless, since it “has long followed the practice of defending federal statutes as long as reasonable arguments can be made in support of their constitutionality.” So there you go, gays — at least government will feel bad as it continues to defend a discriminatory law.

Obama admin softens tone in gay-marriage suit [Under the Radar/Politico]

Justice Department Now Grudgingly Defending DOMA