Last night, U.S. District Court Judge Claudia Wilken in California ruled that the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is unconstitutional in a case called Dragovich v. U.S. Department of the Treasury. The Clinton-appointed federal judge found that DOMA violates the Constitution’s equal protections clause due to the fact that, along with a provision of the state’s tax law, it limits same-sex couples and domestic partners from fully participating in the California Public Employees Retirement System. This marks the first federal court decision on DOMA since President Obama announced his endorsement of same-sex marriage on May 9. Two other judges and a bankruptcy court have similarly ruled DOMA unconstitutional.
Indeed, the equal protection violation clause is a powerful argument that has been used before to attack DOMA. It's a law which codifies discrimination, plain and simple. What will SCOTUS decide on this? Who knows.
All the more reason to keep Mitt Romney out of the White House, if you ask me.
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