Proposition 8 Ruled Unconstitutional

The 9th Circuit Court ruled by a margin of 2-1 that Prop 8 was unconstitutional and was a form of unlawful discrimination. They also mentioned that Vaughn Walker who originally ruled it was unconstitutional was right to do so even if he could have benefited from the decision since he was gay and opponents accused him of bias and special interest.

What the ruling did do was put obstacles in the way of other states with referenda to roll back already existing same-sex marriage laws. It will be doubly difficult for states to take these rights away.

But the ruling was narrow and very specific to California. It made a point to avoid the broader question of whether same-sex marriage is a constitutional right. It did affirm that the issue of marriage was significant as different from same sex unions.

The court ruling drew a lot of support. I wonder what took them so long. It seemed to take forever. But Republican presidential candidates all denounced the decision and Prop 8 defenders vowed to take the case to the Supreme Court. Quite frankly it is hard to envision how today's court ruling will be the basis for a broader ruling on same-sex marriage as a constitutional right. It is more likely that the decision would simply be affirmed.

The more interesting case would be over the Defense of Marriage Act, which also has been ruled unconstitutional and seems now to be a broader platform to rule on same sex marriage on a national basis.