Holder's Final Vow to Supreme Court: Uphold Marriage Equality
Outgoing Attorney General Eric Holder says that he expects the Department of Justice to stand behind gay and lesbian couples seeking the freedom to marry before the Supreme Court.
There's still no word from the U.S. Supreme Court on the pending marriage litigation. But while we wait for the justices to make an announcement, the Department of Justice is poised to weigh in before the court no matter which cases if any the high court takes up.
The Supreme Court met on Monday to consider hearing one, several, or none of the seven marriage equality cases currently pending before it. However, the nine justices could also put off a decision until a later date. That's looking increasingly likely, since the Fifth Circuit might issue a controversial decision upholding marriage bans at some point in November or December.
In the meantime, outgoing U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder revealed to NBC News that the Department of Justice is likely to file a brief before the Supreme Court in support of the freedom to marry.
Holder announced last week that he would be stepping down as soon as a replacement can be appointed. Under his tenure, the Department of Justice stopped defending the federal Defense of Marriage Act, arguing that the law was unconstitutional. Last June, the Supreme Court agreed and struck down a key section of the 1996 law.
Holder also halted deportations for non-citizens in relationships with gay and lesbian Americans.
In his interview with NBC, Holder said that his work for civil rights is one of his proudest accomplishments. "What we've done for LGBT equality, same-sex marriage, I'm very proud of that," he told Pete Williams (who, incidentally, was listed among The Advocate's recent ranking of most influential LGBT people working in mainstream media).
Later in the interview, Holder described his expectation for the DOJ's involvement with the marriage cases pending before the Supreme Court.
"I expect that the Justice Department will file a brief, and the brief will be consistent with the positions that we've taken in the past with respect to same-sex marriage," he said.
Last year, the DOJ filed a brief in opposition to DOMA, stating:
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Holder's Final Vow to Supreme Court: Uphold Marriage Equality