A waste of your tax dollars defending DOMA

Here's how Republican leadership in the House is wasting your tax-payer dollars. I've written before about the Department of Justice deciding it would no longer defend the Defense of Marriage Act in court challenges, because of legal opinions that parts of it are unconstitutional.

When the Obama administration made that announcement, House Speaker John Boehner then announced that the House would defend it. The House has subsequently authorized up to $1.5 million of taxpayer money for legal fees.

Now that legal team has filed a brief telling the court that there is no need for it to overturn DOMA because:

1. Gay people are far from politically powerless and can't say that they face discrimination that is unlikely to be soon rectified by legislative means.

2. The "very significant gains" that homosexual rights groups have made "both in legislative terms and in popular opinion" demonstrate that they have "ample opportunity to attract favorable attention of lawmakers."

3. Gay people haven't been discriminated against for very long since the term homosexual only came into use in the mid-19th century.

4. Gay people can't consider their sexuality an immutable trait like race or gender, so they can't argue that DOMA denies fundamental rights.

5. Studies saying gay people raise well-adjusted children are questionable, and DOMA "promotes responsible procreation."

6. There is "nothing intrusive" about DOMA, which is simply a definitional statue that defines for federal law purposes "marriage" and "spouse."

That's their defense, apparently. A hearing is set for December 16th.

Frankly, as a highly paid attorney and former Solicitor General (in the Bush administration) Paul Clement should be ashamed to take so much money for such a pallid argument.

#1a. If gay people have such political power, why is DOMA still law?
#2a. See 1a above.
#3a. Ask any gay person alive since 1890 about discrimination.
#4a. That claim is refuted by scientific studies.
#5a. Absolutely not true. Reputable studies show the opposite.
#6. Simple answer to this one: Bullshit.

How many teachers and police officers could be retained in their jobs with this wasted money?

Ralph