First Marriage License Issued to Same-Sex Couple After Kim Davis' Return
North Carolina County Magistrates Refuse To Perform Any Marriages Because Of Marriage Equality
Kim Davis Supporters Call On Deputy Clerks To Either Stop Issuing Marriage Licenses Or Quit
Despite Michelle Duggar, Arkansas Town Approves LGBT Non-Discrimination Protections
Kim Davis Should Go Back To Jail If She Interferes With Deputy Clerks’ Ability To Issue Marriage Licenses, Says Americans United
Church-State Watchdog Group Says Recalcitrant Clerk
Must Be Closely Monitored
Controversial Rowan County, Ky., clerk Kim Davis should be sent back to jail if she interferes with her office’s ability to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, says Americans United for Separation of Church and State.
“Reports have surfaced that Kim Davis intends to violate the court order by again denying marriage licenses to same-sex couples,” said Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United. “If Davis does that, she deserves to go back behind bars.”
U.S. District Judge David L. Bunning ordered Davis released today under the condition that she not interfere with the ability of her deputy clerks to issue licenses to all couples who are legally permitted to obtain them. Several media outlets, however, have reported that Davis doesn’t intend to abide by that condition.
Davis has refused to issue marriage licenses to any couples in Rowan County because she opposes same-sex marriage. Her staff was willing to issue the licenses, but she ordered them not to.
Lynn expressed dismay over the Davis saga and said efforts by Religious Right groups to portray her as a hero are offensive.
“Kim Davis’ supporters who believe she is akin to Martin Luther King are delusional,” Lynn said. “The woman is much more like George Wallace. Davis is abusing the authority of her office to restrict rights, not expand them. That makes all the difference.”
Added Lynn, “Davis believes her religious beliefs give her the right to tell others what to do. Her efforts to pose as a ‘religious freedom’ martyr are laughable. If she really believes she can’t do her job, she ought to do the honorable thing and resign.”
Kim Davis To Be Released From Jail On Judge's Orders
(Final) Reply to Author of Cato Brief in Little Sisters Contraception Case
This article by Americans United's Senior Litigation Counsel Gregory M. Lipper originally appeared on Harvard Law's Bill of Health blog.
This is the third and (I promise) final installment in my skirmish with Josh Blackman over a brief that he and Cato Institute filed in support of Little Sisters of the Poor’s quixotic challenge to regulations requiring them to fill out a form to obtain an exemption from providing contraceptive coverage to its employees. If you haven’t read the previous posts, you can do so here (my first post), here (Josh’s response to me), here (my first reply to Josh), and here (Josh’s second response to me). The basic gist is that, contrary to Cato’s brief, (1) HHS had the authority to implement the nonprofit accommodation, and (2) if HHS didn’t have the authority to issue the accommodation, then Hobby Lobby no longer controls whether the original contraceptive coverage requirement satisfies RFRA, because the Court in Hobby Lobby pointed to the HHS accommodation as the basis for concluding that a less-restrictive alternative exists.
Litany Of Lies: FRC’s Perkins Packs An Email With Copious Falsehoods
From Americans United's Wall of Separation blog
I realize that people may be tired of reading about the saga of Kim Davis, the Rowan County, Ky., clerk who is in jail because she ignored a federal court order to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. But on Friday I received a blast email from Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council (FRC), that is so littered with lies that it demands a reply.
A Reply to the Author of Cato’s Brief in the Little Sisters Contraception Case
This article by Americans United's Senior Litigation Counsel Gregory M. Lipper originally appeared on Harvard Law's Bill of Health blog.
Josh Blackman has replied to my post criticizing the Cato Institute’s amicus brief (which Josh coauthored) in support of the cert petition in the Little Sisters contraception case. My original post made two arguments: (1) if you take away the nonprofit accommodation, Hobby Lobby no longer supplies a rule of decision, because the presence of the nonprofit accommodation was what led the Court to conclude that RFRA barred the coverage requirement, and (2) if you prevent regulatory agencies from offering reasonable, tailored accommodations to their regulations, the result is bad for religious liberty.
Gulag Appalachia?: Kentucky Clerk Claims Persecution, Refuses To Obey Supreme Court Verdict
Kentucky County Clerk Kim Davis Found In Contempt Of Court, Now In Custody
Little Sisters: Cato Institute Targets the Affordable Care Act—Yet Again
This article by Americans United's Senior Litigation Counsel Gregory M. Lipper originally appeared on Harvard Law's Bill of Health blog.
Fresh of its unsuccessful attempt to gut the Affordable Care Act in King v. Burwell, the Cato Institute is back for more. This time, Cato has filed an amicus brief in support of Supreme Court review in Little Sisters of the Poor Home for the Aged v. Burwell. This is one of the many, many (many) challenges brought under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) by nonprofit organizations to an accommodation, offered by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), exempting religious nonprofits from providing contraceptive coverage to their employees. To take advantage of the accommodation, nonprofits need only provide written notice to the government of their objection and the name of their insurance provider or plan administrator. At that point, the government arranges for the nonprofit organization’s insurance company or plan administrator to provide the coverage at no cost to the nonprofit or its employees.
Alabama Taxpayers May Have To Pay $200,000 In Legal Fees After Losing Marriage Equality Fight
Even Justice Scalia Would Tell Kim Davis To #DoYourJob Or Find A New One
Justice Antonin Scalia, as we all know, was very much against the Supreme Court's June decision on marriage equality. His scathing dissent was a veritable cornucopia of sarcasm, bewilderment and ire. But even he would agree that Religious Right poster girl Kim Davis should either do the job she is paid by the taxpayers to do or find another position that better fits her version of morality.
Kim Davis Defied Highest Court In The Land, Now Only Answers to "God's Authority"
When we started this post, the Supreme Court had just denied Kentucky county clerk Kim Davis' plea for a stay of the preliminary injunction requiring her to begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples. It was a cheerful post, a post rejoicing to see that justice system worked. The sun was shining, the Supreme Court stuck to its decision, and all was right with the world.
And then we saw this.
Alliance Defending Freedom Hypocritical In March For Life Case
Ted Cruz Predicts That Anti-Christian Persecution Will Soon Be Arriving In A Town Near You
Fresh off his rally for "religious freedom" in Iowa, Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz warned an audience at the South Carolina "We Stand With God" rally that anti-Christian persecution, like the kind that terrorizes Christian businesses who refuse to serve same-sex couples, might be coming for their state.
Kim Davis Watch 2015: Rowan County Clerk Asks Supreme Court For Relief Before Marriage License Ruling Goes Into Effect
Just a day after the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals denied her motion for a stay of the preliminary injunction pending appeal, Kim Davis has reached out to the Supreme Court to issue the stay.
Georgia State Senator Still Fuming Over Business Interference In His Anti-LGBT Bill
If you haven't had a chance to read Mark Joseph Stern's wry article about Georgia Sen. Josh McKoon, then you are missing out on all the ways the esteemed lawmaker has been trying to justify the failure of a "religious liberty" bill that died last spring.