Lockyer should remove himself from Cal Marry-In cases

California Attorney General Bill Lockyer is caught in a trap of his own making. He doesn't really like Prop. 22, the voter-approved law which recognizes only mixed (male-female) marriages. Yet, after prodding by the Governator, he's defending that law in the courts. Thereby he's losing credibility with bigots and queers alike.

Right-wingers say, "We have an attorney general who has a political perspective that is far different from the one he has to defend."

California queers and progressives say, "Bill, you're supposed to be our liberal friend. So why are you using hard-ball tactics in court?"

Both complaints have merit. On the right hand, every contested state law, including a bad law, deserves to be vigorously defended by competent lawyers representing the state.

On the left hand, if Lockyer wants future votes from queers, liberals, and progressives, he cannot be seen as publicly opposing equal rights --- not even with his fingers crossed behind his back. Lawyers may understand such hypocrisy, but most laypersons won't.

So he's caught in a political trap. That would be unfair, except that he could easily climb out of it.

He could escape by "recusing" (removing) himself from the gay-marriage cases. Then the state's position could be represented by some assistant attorney general; preferably by one who actually voted for the law which he's required to defend.

Why doesn't Lockyer do so?

--- SaveFreedom [at] yahoogroups.com
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[For details of a San Francisco Superior Court case about same-sex marriage, please see SF Chronicle, 9 April 2004, Friday:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2004/04/09/BAGP762TDA1.DTL ]
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SAN FRANCISCO events, April 10-11-12:


CAL: SF: 10 April, Sat.: 12 noon: SF anti-war march & rally, starting at United Nations Plaza, near Market and 7th Streets. Near Civic Center BART/Muni station.
(IF you attend, please bring equal-rights signs.)



*CAL: SF: 10 April , Sat: drum circle, Hippy Hill, Golden Gate Park, around 3pm. Free. Informal.
[Hippy Hill is part of Sharon Meadow. Walk into GG Park from Haight & Stanyan.
From downtown SF, take bus 71, streetcar N-Judah, etc.; get off at Stanyan.)


*CAL: SF: 11 April: Easter Sunday with The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, in Dolores Park, starting around 11 AM. Free. [http://www.thesisters.org ]


*CAL: San Francisco: Monday, 12 April, noon -1pm: MarriageEqualityCA rally, on steps of CA Supreme Court, 300 McAllister Street (across from SF City Hall): marking one month since high court ordered SF officials to stop issuing same-sex mariage licenses.
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