PrintJuly 12, 2010
Values Voters and Limited Government
It's unlikely that Senate Democrats using the Elena Kagan confirmation hearings to criticize the Roberts court as "activist" will speak of Judge Joseph Tauro's two separate decisions on July 8 declaring the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) unconstitutional.For me, reading Judge Tauro's decision in the case involving private plaintiffs was like hearing fingernails scratching a chalkboard. It is filled with nearly every annoying tactic employed by outcome-favoring judges. Another DOMA case decided the same day by Judge Tauro was brought by the very liberal Massachusetts Attorney General, Martha Coakley, at taxpayer expense.In the case brought by individuals, including the spouse of former Massachusetts Congressman Gerry Studds, Judge Tauro cited a General Accounting Office report that DOMA implicated at least 1,049 federal laws. He ultimately found that DOMA violates the equal protection of laws. The 14th Amendment, in which the Equal Protection Clause is found, is directed only...(Read Full Article)
