Bob Barr on California Supreme Court Ruling

Kudos to former Congressman Barr for defending the ruling by the California Supreme Court striking down their ban on same-sex marriages.

"Regardless of whether one supports or opposes same sex marriage, the decision to recognize such unions or not ought to be a power each state exercises on its own, rather than imposition of a one-size-fits-all mandate by the federal government (as would be required by a Federal Marriage Amendment which has been previously proposed and considered by the Congress). The decision today by the Supreme Court of California properly reflects this fundamental principle of federalism on which our nation was founded.

"Indeed, the primary reason for which I authored the Defense of Marriage Act in 1996 was to ensure that each state remained free to determine for its citizens the basis on which marriage would be recognized within its borders, and not be forced to adopt a definition of marriage contrary to its views by another state. The decision in California is an illustration of how this principle of states' powers should work."

"Regardless of whether one supports or opposes slavery, the decision to recognize such persons as free human beings ought to be a power each state exercises on its own, rather than imposition of a one-size-fits-all mandate by the federal government (as would be required by the Thirteenth Amendment which has been previously proposed and considered by the Congress). The decision to ratify this amendment contradicts this fundamental principle of federalism on which our nation was founded"

I'll reserve kudos on this one for Phillies:

"It is wonderful to hear that once again our Courts have defended our Constitutional rights," Phillies said. "Once again, our courts have agreed that separate is not and cannot be equal. To to the people of California I say: Thank you for taking another step toward liberty and equality for all."