Last Call For Equality, Even In Kentucky

The string of federal judges who have declared the Supreme Court's ruling on DOMA to mean that states must recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states as legal grew by one yesterday...and that state was, of all places, right here in Kentucky.

In Wednesday’s ruling, U.S. District Judge John G. Heyburn II was not asked to decide whether Kentucky itself must issue marriage licenses to gay couples. But he said “there is no doubt that Windsor and this court’s analysis suggest a possible result to that question.” 

Heyburn was asked by four same-sex couples — married in either Canada or U.S. states that allow such unions — to make Kentucky recognize their marriages. 

“It is clear that Kentucky’s laws treat gay and lesbian persons differently in a way that demeans them,” Heyburn wrote. 

Striking them down, he said, will “make real the promise of equal protection under the law. It will profoundly affect validly married same-sex couples’ experience of living in the commonwealth and elevate their marriage to an equal status in the eyes of state law.”

Since Judge Heyburn was appointed by Poppy Bush on the recommendation of a Senator at the time by the name of Mitch McConnell, Turtle Boy's primary opponent, Matt Bevin, is blaming him for this JUDICIAL OVERREACH WITH LOTS OF EXCLAMATION POINTS.

“It is no surprise that Judge Heyburn was Mitch McConnell's general counsel, and McConnell recommended him for the federal bench. Kentucky deserves better,” Bevin said in a statement. 

The Madison Project, a conservative group backing Bevin also sent out a press release headlined, “A McConnell crony forces gay marriage on Kentucky.”

McConnell trashed the ruling too.

On Wednesday, McConnell said in a statement that the courts should not stepped in and the 2004 state constitutional amendment barring same-sex marriage should stand. 

“I am a traditionalist and support that position, but regardless of one’s personal view on the issue, we should be able to agree that only the people of Kentucky, through the legislative process, should have the authority to change the law, not the courts,” McConnell said in a statement.

Alison Grimes's camp released a very...careful...statement.

Democrat Alison Lundergan Grimes issued an oblique statement appearing to support gay marriage but saying the courts shouldn’t have stepped in. 

“Alison has been married for seven years and has stated publicly that she wouldn’t want to deny other couples the opportunity to make that same commitment,” spokeswoman Charly Norton said in statement. “She’s also made clear that while the Supreme Court has ruled that state sovereignty applies, churches should not be forced to recognize anything inconsistent with their teachings,” 

When asked to clarify, Norton said, the statement “means that that’s where she personally stands, but that state sovereignty should be respected.”

Take that as you will.  It's Kentucky, folks.  Grimes can't exactly come out and say "Hooray for same-sex marriage!" even if she is a Democrat in this state.  Well, she could, but she won't.