Idaho is trying to ban gay marriage across the country.
INTRO
If you're looking for a good vacation this Spring, why not visit Idaho? A state that if you search google for "fun things to do in Idaho", you'd get this as the first and top result of fun things to do. Yes, sadly the highest rated, apparently "fun" thing to do in Idaho is visiting the Aryan Nations headquarters, just north of Hayden, Idaho. For those who don't know, Aryan Nations is another name for Nazis. So, you can likely tell where this story is heading already.
Idaho has long been controlled by a super majority of republicans since at least 1992. Out of their 70 House members, 61 of them are republican and just 9 are democrat. Their Senate isn't much better with 29 republicans and just 6 democrats. Mix in their republican governor, Brad Little and you get a super majority that can pass nearly anything they want to.
Their congress just went into session this week for their first acts after being reelected or newly-elected to office in November. But their first joint act, called House Joint Memorial 1, is a non-binding resolution that claims the US Supreme Court overstepped its authority by requiring states to recognize same-sex marriage. Yes, this was their first act of business. Thank goodness they're not funding their schools which have been rated the "Worst-Funded Schools in the Nation".
But this resolution calls for the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn its decision in the June 26, 2015 case on Obergefell v. Hodges. That was a landmark decision stating that marriage equality between same-sex couples could legally be married and every state had to legally recognize the marriage.
Since the case in 2015, multiple studies found a vast majority of Americans support marriage equality. But their resolution calls for marriage to be returned to the "natural definition" as between one man and one woman.
Now, it's important to note that this is not legally binding. A resolution by a government body is just a formal expression of opinion or intent. Because the Supreme Court ruled on this on the federal level, it means Idaho state cannot do anything right now. But this resolution does two things. First, it means if the Supreme Court were to reevaluate Obergefell v. Hodges, this resolution tells us Idaho would have a trigger law put in place to undo gay marriage state-wide if that ruling was overturned like Roe v. Wade was.
Second, it tells us that Idaho is calling on the Supreme Court to act on this. And right now, the US Supreme Court has a super majority too and they have an incoming president who is one of the most anti-gay presidents to ever hold office besides Reagan. So, they very likely will take the suggestion to reevaluate the case and possibly overturn it.
Some democrats think that's impossible but it happened in Roe v. Wade just a few years ago and in his decision, certified asshole Clarence Thomas wrote that the Supreme Court should reconsider and said he looks forward to overturning Obergefell v. Hodges now that Roe v. Wade fell.
The good news is, in December 2022, President Biden passed the Respect for Marriage Law which requires states to recognize same-sex marriage but - and it's a nice but, not nicer than my husband's butt but still - it doesn't mean new marriages would be allowed. It basically means if you're already married, then states have to recognize your marriage on any court documents or on your taxes. But it really never says you can get married in the future. That part was conveniently left out in order to "balance the interests of religious groups."
So, overturning Obergefell could still be a problem for our community. Marriages like mine with my gorgeous husband are safe for now but if you haven't proposed yet or set a date for your wedding, it's probably not a terrible idea to start putting things in motion before the Supreme Court has ultimate power on January 20th.
I know this is more bad news on top of a really bad week with forest fires raging on the West Coast, trillions in damages, a current president who just actively hurt the trans community after promising to protect them in his State of the Union address, and an incoming president who is the laughing stock of world leaders because he's trying to annex Canada, Greenland, and Panama. And Iran is helping them somehow. This week has been exhausting to say the least.
Normally, I'd say we don't have to worry about state resolutions but remember, Donald Trump is a Nazi. Even his vice president told us he's a nazi while attempting to buy Nazi memorabilia at a gun show himself. And remember, the top-rated "fun" thing to do in Idaho is visit the headquarters of the local Nazi chapter. So, if you don't think not only would Trump support this, but he'd sign the anti-gay marriage bill at the Nazi headquarters in Idaho, you're fooling yourself into trusting a man who's given you zero reason to trust him.
And don't tell me Trump is an ally because we've already proven that false in a previous episode. And don't tell me it would never happen because Roe v. Wade fell years ago and even certified asshole Clarence Thomas warned us, gay marriage would be next.
OUTRO
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