House Action Likely on Marriage Act

[ProSense]

Source: New York Times

House Republicans are expected to move Friday to assert themselves as defenders of the Defense of Marriage Act, the 1996 law that bars federal recognition of same-sex marriages. Last month, the Obama administration said it had decided the law was unconstitutional, and had directed the Justice Department to stop defending it in court.

While Republican rebukes to Mr. Obama’s decision were largely muted, Speaker John Boehner has said that the Republican-controlled House would likely make a move to defend the law.

In an television interview Wednesday night, Mr. Boehner called the President’s decision “outrageous”. He added: “It’s the law of the land. It’s the job of the Justice Department to defend the work of our government. And I just think it’s outrageous. We’re looking at our options, what’s available to us to intervene. The short – the long and the short of this is that we are going to intervene. The question is how do we do it.”

Under federal law, whenever the executive branch declines to defend a statute it believes is unconstitutional, the Attorney General must inform Congress of that decision, which he has in this case, and lawmakers must then determine whether to appoint their own lawyer to defend the statute in court.



Read more: http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/03/house-action-likely-on-marriage-act/?partner=rss&emc=rss

[Historic NY]

1. hummmmmm who would they hire? Man on dog? How is its being paid for?

:popcorn:

[Fearless]

2. Looks like they'll be creating ONE job... of course it's that pesky government kind...

I wonder whose head will explode first!

[nyy1998]

3. This after Boehner criticized Obama for taking on a this issue instead of jobs, what a hypocrite nt