DOMA Update: House Likely to Defend Law in Court, More Senate Support for Repeal
February 28, 2011
It looks like the House of Representatives will appoint lawyers to defend the so-called "Defense of Marriage Act" in court, now that President Obama is declining to do so because he recognized that the law amounts to unconstitutional discrimination against gay couples.
"I'd be very surprised if the House didn't decide that they were going to defend the law," House Speaker John Boehner said in an interview with the Christian Broadcast Network. "We’ve been researching all the options that are available to us. We’ll be talking to the members here in the next few days about that and I expect that we’ll have a decision by the end of the week."
Even though the Obama Administration is no longer defending DOMA, it is still enforcing it – with dire consequences for countless couples around the country like Cristina Ojeda and Monica Alcota.
The couple lives in New York, and Monica is facing deportation to Argentina. They were legally married in Connecticut, but Cristina – who is a U.S. citizen – can't sponsor Monica for a green card because DOMA stops the federal government from recognizing their marriage. In addition to being torn apart from her wife, Monica fears persecution for being gay back in her rural hometown. Their lawyer is hoping that the Obama Administration's decision will mean that at least immigration authorities will delay any deportation.
As challenges to DOMA continue on the legal front, legislative efforts are gaining momentum on Capitol Hill as well. Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy said he would join California Senator Dianne Feinstein in sponsoring bill to repeal DOMA. Leahy voted for DOMA in 1996, but has since said that he has changed his position on the issue.
He made that perfectly clear in an email to constituents:
As a Vermonter who has been married for 48 years, I believe it is important to encourage and to sanction committed relationships; relationships that encourage us all to give back to our community; and relationships that complete our lives.
Vermont led the way by being the first state to adopt a same-sex marriage law through a legislative process. Now that several states that have voted to give full marriage rights to same-sex couples, I believe that the Federal government should not interfere with those laws or discriminate between marriages sanctioned by State law.
Vermont and other states have determined that committed same-sex couples and their families should be entitled to all the protection of that state-sanctioned union. The Defense of Marriage Act denies some Vermont families equal treatment, creating a system of second-class citizens. This goes against American values and it must end.
... It is a core American value that all people should be treated equally by their government. Vermont has been leading the nation on this important civil rights issue and this week, President Obama and Attorney General Holder moved the Federal government in the right direction.
In the House, New York Congressman Jerrold Nadler has said he will re-introduce a repeal bill he sponsored in 2009. Back then, there was never a Senate version.