The first case, 40 years on
Jack Baker, the name party in the only gay marriage case decided by the U.S. Supreme Court, stopped pressing the issue in 1980 when "it took on a life of its own," he said. Three decades later, the same-sex marriage issue is "fundamentally over and now is just a matter of putting it into operation," believes the former head of the Minnesota Civil Liberties Union who worked with Baker and his life partner from the trial court to the nation’s top court.
Will Obama’s SG weigh in?
The Prop. 8 appeal to the 9th Circuit puts the U.S. Department of Justice in a sticky spot. The solicitor general’s office has to decide when and if it should become involved in the case — which, even though it involves a state ban on same-sex marriage, could have implications for the federal Defense of Marriage Act.
