The Interocitor

Lockyer, Arnold and SF

According to Saturday's LA Times, the Governor "directed the state Attorney General Friday to take immediate action to stop San Francisco's parade of same-sex marriages..."

In a strongly worded letter to Bill Lockyer, the governor said that because San Francisco's actions "are directly contrary to state law and present an imminent risk to civil order, I hereby direct you to take immediate steps to obtain a definitive judicial resolution of this controversy."

In a speech Friday night at the California Republican Party convention in Burlingame, Schwarzenegger departed from his prepared text to comment on the issue.

"We are seeing in San Francisco that the courts have dropped the ball," he said. "It's time for the city of San Francisco to start respecting state law."

The crowd of 700 Republican activists gave him a standing ovation.

Since Schwarzenegger is just about the most pro-gay-rights Republican one is likely to see, this action should be considered a centrist rebuke to the in-your-face strategy that the gay activists have been employing. Hardly suprising as I've repeatedly noted this strategy will backfire. It may backfire badly enough to enable the horrid Federal Marriage Amendment to pass.

The Attorney General's reaction? Here's what his spokesperson had to say:

"The governor cannot direct the attorney general," said Hallye Jordan. "He can direct the Highway Patrol. He can direct 'Terminator 4.' But he can't tell the attorney general what to do. However, we are his lawyer, and we are moving as expeditiously — with deliberation — as possible."

With a lawyer like this, the Governor hardly needs an adversary. What Lockyer should be doing -- what he is Consititutionally required to do -- is what the New Mexico Attorney General did yesterday:

[A] county clerk in New Mexico's Sandoval County issued marriage licenses Friday to about two dozen gay couples, some of whom then exchanged vows outside the courthouse, as more same-sex couples lined up for a chance to tie the knot.

But New Mexico's attorney general issued an opinion later saying the licenses were invalid under state law, and the clerk stopped issuing them.

Arnold should put Lockyer's feet to the fire here, and demand he file charges against Newsom, et al, under Penal Code section 359 as xrlq has suggested. At the bare minimum he needs to intervene in the current lawsuit, and assert that substantial damage to the rule of law is occuring and demand an immediate injunction. Failing that, the recall process is still available.

I support gay marriage, but these dipsh**s are beginning to make me wish I didn't. I'm sure I'm not alone.

Update: See also Patterico's comments about "harm" and the rule of law.

More: Lawrence Simon says the same over at Amish Tech Support

Posted by Kevin Murphy at February 21, 2004 09:56 AM | TrackBack