WASHINGTON — A Republican-led House panel may intervene as soon as next week against litigation that aims to overturn the Defense of Marriage Act on the grounds that it unfairly prohibits gay troops from obtaining benefits for their same-sex spouses.
Michael Key, Washington BladeThe litigation, known as McLaughlin v. Panetta, was filed on behalf of gay troops and veterans by Servicemembers Legal Defense Network and Chadbourne & Parke LLC. It’s pending before the District Court of Massachusetts.
Christopher Man, counsel at Chadbourne & Parke LLC, told the Blade via email on Saturday he believes the Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group, led by House Speaker John Boehner, is “likely to intervene soon, possibly as soon as next week” and plaintiffs will oppose the intervention.
The Justice Department sent notification to Congress last month that it wouldn’t defend DOMA in the McLaughlin case — keeping in line with President Obama’s determination last year that the anti-gay law was unconstitutional — as well as provisions in Title 10, Title 32, and Title 38 of the U.S. Code prohibiting gay troops from receiving benefits.
Boehner’s panel, which took on defense of DOMA last year following a 3-2 party-line vote in the administration’s stead, is already defending the statute in other cases challenging its constitutionality.
On Feb. 9, Chief Warrant Officer Charlie Morgan, a lesbian in the New Hampshire National Guard and plaintiff in the gay troops’ lawsuit, met with Boehner’s staff to ask the Ohio Republican to stop defending DOMA in court, but was told he’ll likely continue defense of the law. She’s been diagnosed with stage-four incurable breast cancer and is seeking survivor benefits that are awarded to veterans in opposite-sex marriages for her spouse, Karen Morgan.
Filed under: National Headlines
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This is GOP bullshit.
thats bullshit…..wth
Hell with Boehner! He is going to LOSE!
Lol his name is Boehner?!?! That’s hilarious and unfortunate.
lol dude your last name is boner i can’t take you seriously
This is why the GOP is trending against the course of history as they push a social adgenda and are focused on who has sex with whom most people so not care but they do care about who has a job and who doesn’t – ad why our balance of trade is off. Conservatives should want to keep gov’t out of peoples lives yet they keep trying to sneakl a peek under my sheets and after a while it gets old.
loser
its “Bay- Ner” not “Boner” lol but i was the same way till i heard him mentioned on the news.
Yes another reason why the GOP will lose BIG this year.
Wow The Republican Party (Authoritarian Conservative) is insane. They are always working against progress and that’s why the Republican Party will sooner or later will cease to be.
they are definately waking up the apathetic!
Im all faux-tan an tears…
I still say give Republicans what they are asking for: Simply refuse to allow them to comprimise their values by refusing to have sex with them unless you want a repub baby. Would not take long for the Dem party to be the majority EVERYWHERE LOL
Nothing he could do about it even if he wanted to.
There is nothing wrong with both sides of the political party. But the problem is, the republican forget what their side is about. They want smaller government? They end up needing bigger government. They want people to butt out of their lives, and yet they tell people how to live and worry about how others lives and try to control it if they don’t like it. It’s after the red scare (in the ’50s) that got people to get all wired up and lose the true American value. They lie about American history or actually fail to know what the founding fathers came to America for.
So a guy that got DISCHARGED out of the military after ONLY *8 weeks* of service in the U.S. Navy wants to take civil rights away from REAL soldiers that actually fought in War Time, some of them doing multiple Tours in Iraq and Afghanistan? These troops are willing to take a bullet to ensure our rights only to come back home to a country that denies them their own rights. Seriously? Anybody willing to take a bullet for MY rights can marry who they damn well please. I’m sure he finds it “real gay”, but what’s really ‘GAY’ is a man getting kicked out of the Navy after only 2 months. I mean, seriously…what a P*$$y!
What a fuckin asshole I hate any politician who discriminates against gays and try’s to take rights away from gays jus cuz they are not straight. Especially from gays, lesbians and bisexuals that are in the military and fight for our country besides those not in the military. We should have equal rights jus like our fellow Americans that our straight. We are gay,lesbian, bisexual or transgendered we are not criminals or disease or hurting anyone. So why are polticians trying to make it hard on us? Why do they have to do what the doing because there anti gay or super religious?
@Erica Cj Andrews – WTH are you talking about?