DOMA goes down

The 1st U. S. Circuit Court of Appeals (last stop before the Supreme Court) has ruled that the Defense of Marriage Act is unconstitutional.

This is the act passed in 1996 that said that states did not have to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states where it was legal.   Even more important, however, was that the federal government also came under its rules, meaning that no benefits -- taxes or special treatment for married couples, including those serving in the military -- could apply to same-sex couples.

Last year, the U.S. Justice Department stated that several constitutional scholars have given an opinion that it was unconstitutional and therefore, the Justice Department would no longer defend the law.

Whereupon, House Majority Leader John Boehner assembled a group of Republicans who vowed to supply that defense, if the DoJ was not going to.    Trouble with that was they authorized about $1.5 million of taxpayer money to do so.

Now we see how that money was wasted -- as everyone knew it would be.   Blame the Republicans for frivolous spending.

Ralph