As the Supreme Court hears arguments today in the case of Obergefell V. Hodges, the gay marriage case, we are on the brink of a massive constitutional decision by the last day of June on this matter.
It now seems clear that the right to gay marriage in all of the states will be declared constitutional by a 5-4 or 6-3 vote, with Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy, and possibly, Chief Justice John Roberts, joining Associate Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor, and Elena Kagan.
The likely author of the upcoming decision should be Justice Kennedy, who has created a majority on three earlier gay rights cases decided by the Supreme Court, but even if not so, Kennedy is the person insuring that gay marriage will become the law of the land!
And this reality brings up an interesting situation: Justice Kennedy was the THIRD CHOICE for the Supreme Court of President Ronald Reagan, after the rejection of Robert Bork and Douglas Ginsburg, and if either had been confirmed by the US Senate, gay rights now would likely not be occurring as rapidly as it has been!
And it also fact that Associate Justice Harry Blackmun, selected by President Richard Nixon, after the rejection of Clement Haynesworth and C. Harold Carswell, the THIRD CHOICE, was the author of the momentous Roe V. Wade decision of 1973, legalizing abortion!
So it turns out that “third choice” Supreme Court nominees Harry Blackmun and Anthony Kennedy have had historic effects on two controversial issues that have divided the nation, but also move the nation forward on women’s rights and gay rights!
Professor,
How accurate is this concerning where various parties are on the left-right spectrum? https://bulbajer.wordpress.com/political-spectrum/
Princess Leia, this article is fairly accurate but I strongly disagree that Adolf Hitler and Nazism is on the Fiscal Center Left, as there is NOTHING leftist about Nazism.
But the right wing LOVES to talk about Liberal Fascism, which is a misnomer, but realize they wish to separate themselves in every way from being Fascist, but many of them most certainly are Fascist oriented! They wish to promote an oligarchy controlled by business elites, and that is very close to Fascism, and in some ways, to Nazism, when their racism, misogyny, nativism, and homophobia show through, as it often does!
That blogger claims to be interested in a progressive green party.
https://bulbajer.wordpress.com/progressive-green-party/
https://progressivegreenparty.wordpress.com/
Why is someone who claims to be progressive putting Nazis on the fiscal left?
It is clear that many people are confused, and do not understand the spectrum of politics, and again, some on the Right do it purposely to denounce all of the advancements under progressivism/liberalism!
I’m hoping for a unanimous decision for marriage equality. I think Corporate America absolutely wants it. (A smart Corporate America doesn’t dismiss any part of the electorate off of whom they can sell their consumer goods and profit.) And, frankly, the Republicans on this U.S. Supreme Court love Corporate America for loving them back. So, a unanimous decision would be great. It would really crush the homophobes in a very satisfying way. But, of course, if I was asked to predict the outcome, and I have to come up with an answer, I would go with 6 to 3 (with Anthony Kennedy and John Roberts making enough of the difference).
D, I think you are right that, in reality, it will be a 6-3 vote, although it would be great to be 9-0, but I cannot imagine Scalia, Alito and Thomas joining the other six.
It would be nice if Thomas participated, but of course, he NEVER asks questions. I am sure he is the only Supreme Court Justice in history NEVER to ask questions. I wish there was a way to force him off the Court, oh well!