On Tuesday afternoon, U.S. District Judge John E. Jones III, struck down Pennsylvania's ban on same-sex marriage.
While there have been near daily reports of these discriminatory laws being found unconstitutional in state after state, it is notable that, in this case, the judge was one appointed by President George W. Bush and has a record of conservative decisions.
"The issue we resolve today is a divisive one. Some of our citizens are made deeply uncomfortable by the notion of same-sex marriage. However, that same-sex marriage causes discomfort in some does not make its prohibition constitutional...We are a better people than what these laws represent, and it is time to discard them into the ash heap of history."
Judge Jones did not include a stay in his decision, suggesting instead that same-sex couples in the Keystone State may be able to begin marrying immediately. "By virtue of this ruling, same-sex couples who seek to marry in Pennsylvania may do so, and already married same-sex couples will be recognized as such in the Commonwealth."
Governor Tom Corbett (R), an often out-spoken opponent of equal marriage rights is expected to seek a stay from the Court of Appeals, though he will not find any assistance in his state's Attorney General's office. It has been nearly a year since Attorney General Kathleen Kane (D) announced that she would not defend the ban.
The recent spate of exclusionary marriage laws being overturned by federal judges is giving my "Gay-Marriage Rainbow" pic quite a workout. I don't mind, not even a teensy bit.
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