Sponsored Content




Intermarkets' Privacy Policy
Support


Donate to Ace of Spades HQ!



Recent Entries
Absent Friends
Bandersnatch 2024
GnuBreed 2024
Captain Hate 2023
moon_over_vermont 2023
westminsterdogshow 2023
Ann Wilson(Empire1) 2022
Dave In Texas 2022
Jesse in D.C. 2022
OregonMuse 2022
redc1c4 2021
Tami 2021
Chavez the Hugo 2020
Ibguy 2020
Rickl 2019
Joffen 2014
AoSHQ Writers Group
A site for members of the Horde to post their stories seeking beta readers, editing help, brainstorming, and story ideas. Also to share links to potential publishing outlets, writing help sites, and videos posting tips to get published. Contact OrangeEnt for info:
maildrop62 at proton dot me
Cutting The Cord And Email Security
Moron Meet-Ups

NoVaMoMe 2024: 06/08/2024
Arlington, VA
Details to follow


Texas MoMe 2024: 10/18/2024-10/19/2024 Corsicana,TX
Contact Ben Had for info





















« Banks paying forclosed people to not trash houses | Main | Italian Cruise Ship Attacked by Pirates, Fights them Off »
April 26, 2009

Drama Before Iowa Marriage Decision Takes Effect
UPDATE: Poll Added

There have been several developments in Iowa over the past few weeks. The Iowa Supreme Court's marriage decision will go into effect on Monday and both sides of the vigorously ongoing debate are ready for more drama.

Two Wednesdays ago, an assistant for a Republican state representative called a county recorder and asked her not to issue marriage licenses to gays because the Iowa Supreme Court decision is "just an opinion." The representative, Kent Sorenson, says he didn't ask his assistant to make the call. It touched off a new, more contentious phase to preparations.

The next day, a spokeswoman for the Iowa Department of Public Health sent an email to Iowa's 99 country recorders telling them they are required to comply with the decision, no exceptions.

The same day, state Senator Merlin Bartz and other Republicans attempted to insert language into a bill which would have provided a "right to conscience" exception for county recorders who don't want to issue marriage licenses to gays. He was blocked by the Democratic leadership on procedural grounds.

On Monday, Bartz and the Iowa Family Policy Center began circulating petitions encouraging Iowa's 99 county recorders to refuse to issue marriage certificates to gay couples.

On Wednesday, Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller issued a statement that has been construed as threatening to county recorders (classy headline, BTW):

"We expect duly-elected county recorders to comply with the Iowa Constitution as interpreted unanimously by the Iowa Supreme Court, the highest court in Iowa," Miller said in a statement to the Iowa Independent. "Our country lives by and thrives by the rule of law, and the rule of law means we all follow the law as interpreted by our courts — not by ourselves. We don't each get to decide what the law is; that would lead to chaos. We must live by and follow what the courts decide."

"Recorders do not have discretion or power to ignore the Iowa Supreme Court’s ruling," Miller said, adding: "If necessary, we will explore legal actions to enforce and implement the Court’s ruling, working with the Iowa Department of Public Health and county attorneys."

Also on Wednesday, the Alliance Defense Fund, a Christian legal organization that I have bad-mouthed before, announced it will provide legal services for any recorder who refuses to provide marriage certificates as an exercise of conscience.

The other side of the marriage coin is state judges who are empowered to perform marriages. One judge has announced that he will simply perform no marriages at all, partially as a result of the decision. He notes that he didn't know until recently that it was a discretionary function and he has had reservations about providing some straight marriages. The AG confirms that if a judge wishes not to perform marriages, she does not have to; however, she cannot choose to perform only straight marriages.

Monday will be the first day gay couples can apply for marriage licenses. Generally, there is a three day waiting period between application and grant of a license. However, that delay can be waived by judges. So sometime next week the first gay marriages in Iowa will occur.

Finally, there's one other wrinkle. I can't decide which side this is going to annoy more, but it's going to be difficult to tell how many gay couples are getting married in Iowa because some county recorders do not make marriage applications available as public records.

Conscience exceptions have been gaining steam for the past year. Vermont included some in its recently passed marriage law. Connecticut, which passed a marriage law this week as the result of a court order, also included protections for churches and some other groups. In fact, because Connecticut was required by its Supreme Court to make marriage available to gay couples, the debate over the law largely focussed on how broad to make the conscience exception.


What do you think:

digg this
posted by Gabriel Malor at 10:07 AM

| Access Comments




Recent Comments
Program administratos.: "132 I wonder how many non illegals are signing up ..."

N: "Reminds me of Jim Carrey in the toilet when that s ..."

Red Turban Someguy - The Republic is already dead!: "It's only barely plausible. It is much more plausi ..."

N: "Some of the gangs actually have cult-religious stu ..."

Dr. Claw: "173 'If this is true and proved, then Putin wins ..."

Helena Handbasket: ">>> 181 >>> I am not defending Ukraine, but the un ..."

Vigo, Scourge of Carpathia, Sorrow of Moldavia: "What was will be! What is will be no more! ..."

Hairyback Guy: "not necessarily in that order, it might also be si ..."

N: "I'd bet the people implementing the program are th ..."

Helena Handbasket: ">>> 147 Visegrád 24 @visegrad24 Mar 26 Inter ..."

G'rump928(c): "[i]These migrants ARE Americans now - they're not ..."

Braenyard: ">>> I am not defending Ukraine, but the uncontroll ..."

Recent Entries
Search


Polls! Polls! Polls!
Frequently Asked Questions
The (Almost) Complete Paul Anka Integrity Kick
Top Top Tens
Greatest Hitjobs

The Ace of Spades HQ Sex-for-Money Skankathon
A D&D Guide to the Democratic Candidates
Margaret Cho: Just Not Funny
More Margaret Cho Abuse
Margaret Cho: Still Not Funny
Iraqi Prisoner Claims He Was Raped... By Woman
Wonkette Announces "Morning Zoo" Format
John Kerry's "Plan" Causes Surrender of Moqtada al-Sadr's Militia
World Muslim Leaders Apologize for Nick Berg's Beheading
Michael Moore Goes on Lunchtime Manhattan Death-Spree
Milestone: Oliver Willis Posts 400th "Fake News Article" Referencing Britney Spears
Liberal Economists Rue a "New Decade of Greed"
Artificial Insouciance: Maureen Dowd's Word Processor Revolts Against Her Numbing Imbecility
Intelligence Officials Eye Blogs for Tips
They Done Found Us Out, Cletus: Intrepid Internet Detective Figures Out Our Master Plan
Shock: Josh Marshall Almost Mentions Sarin Discovery in Iraq
Leather-Clad Biker Freaks Terrorize Australian Town
When Clinton Was President, Torture Was Cool
What Wonkette Means When She Explains What Tina Brown Means
Wonkette's Stand-Up Act
Wankette HQ Gay-Rumors Du Jour
Here's What's Bugging Me: Goose and Slider
My Own Micah Wright Style Confession of Dishonesty
Outraged "Conservatives" React to the FMA
An On-Line Impression of Dennis Miller Having Sex with a Kodiak Bear
The Story the Rightwing Media Refuses to Report!
Our Lunch with David "Glengarry Glen Ross" Mamet
The House of Love: Paul Krugman
A Michael Moore Mystery (TM)
The Dowd-O-Matic!
Liberal Consistency and Other Myths
Kepler's Laws of Liberal Media Bias
John Kerry-- The Splunge! Candidate
"Divisive" Politics & "Attacks on Patriotism" (very long)
The Donkey ("The Raven" parody)
Powered by
Movable Type 2.64