President Obama was probably hoping that his decision to abandon the defense of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) would be a blip in the news cycle and conversations would quickly shift back to Libya, Wisconsin and the economy. But that hasn’t happened as people are calling on Congress to restore the Constitution and defend the laws of the United States.
The Worcester Telegram & Gazette joined the chorus of voices criticizing the President for his “unprecedented and dangerous move.” The editors said the President “cannot pick and choose which federal laws he wishes to enforce” and Attorney General Eric Holder cannot “simply declare a given law unconstitutional.”
The paper is also quick to point out something that has been lost on many of same-sex “marriage” advocates: “The purpose of the law was not to curtail anyone’s spousal rights … Rather, the law gives states a means to define and protect marriage as the union of one man and one woman.”
When Congress approved DOMA in 1996, it received 342 votes, or 78% of the House. Even 60% of House Democrats voted for it, and 32 of its 85 votes in the Senate were Democrats, including liberals like Paul Wellstone (D-MN) and Joe Biden (D-DE). Since President Clinton signed it into law, laws and constitutional amendments have been approved in 31 states by an average yes vote of 67%.
Last Friday, the U.S. Court of Appeals (First Circuit) in Boston set a deadline of March 18th for the Obama administration and the state of Massachusetts to agree on how to proceed with the current DOMA litigation. “[T]he court ordered the administration to get together with the plaintiffs to develop a plan for the future of DOMA—Eric Holder sitting down with Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley to plan the future of DOMA,” wrote Brian Brown of NOM.
Congress is being pressured by groups supporting same-sex “marriage” to refuse to step in and defend DOMA, specifically starting a “Don’t Defend DOMA” campaign. But pro-family voters around the country are lobbying their representatives and House Speaker Boehner to stand up and defend DOMA, and it looks like they are listening.
If you haven’t already, please take a couple minutes to call Speaker John Boehner on DOMA. Our Massachusetts delegation is hopeless as far as finding support for the defense of DOMA, so your calls to Speaker Boehner are your best bet. You can leave a message at his office at 202.225.0600.
Last Thursday, I was on BroadSide with Jim Braude to debate the issue of DOMA with a lawyer from the other side. Check it out here:
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