Is Marriage Equality Here To Stay... In Utah?

As soon as I had heard there was something big brewing in Utah,the first person to come to mind for an inside scoop was Ryan Combe, a progressive Democrat who ran for Congress last year. He said the day had been "shaping up to be one of the most shocking days in Utah’s political history when around 2pm a ruling from U.S. District Judge Robert Shelby made certain it would go down as the biggest day in politics that this state has ever seen." I asked him to expand on what was going on there from his own perspective and he sent me this:

I had been glued to my computer all day as I watched the findings of a special investigation into Utah’s former Attorney General John Swallow. I couldn’t believe my eyes as I watched bits of information come in from the committee meeting. My eyes about popped out of my head when I saw my friend’s Facebook post that Utah’s Amendment 3, defining marriage between one man and one woman, had been ruled unconstitutional. “People are getting marriage licenses in SLC and are getting married today!” I immediately text my wife who was at work and then started calling people to collect on bets I had made with them over the past couple years. It was wonderful to see the photos of friends who had been in loving relationships for years finally be able to legally wed.

However, as one group rejoices, another weeps and soon the quotes from Utah’s Governor Gary Herbert started hitting the airwaves. “I am very disappointed an activist federal judge is attempting to override the will of the people of Utah. I am working with my legal counsel and the acting attorney general to determine the best course to defend traditional marriage within the borders of Utah,” Herbert said. I can’t say I was surprised by his response, but one thing immediately bothered me. The term, “acting attorney general.” You mean the unelected AG that is attempting to hold down the state’s top law office while a special committee exposes years of corruption and deceit that have happened right under Herbert’s nose? The acting AG that replaced John Swallow, one of the most corrupt politicians this state has ever seen, who resigned last month a day after his pension benefits kicked in? Where was Governor Herbert hiding out as the accusations against Swallow started flooding in? Where was his disappointment? And now, on the same day that mountains of evidence are being presented demonstrating a pattern of corruption on Utah’s Capitol Hill, Herbert’s first order of business is to try all he can to stop loving, consenting adults from getting married. What kind of reality is this man living in? Governor Herbert, there are a lot of things that need immediate attention in this state, but gay marriage isn’t one of them. The fight for “traditional marriage” is one that has already been lost. The SCOTUS has made it clear that the “one man and one woman” argument is a loser. And when Justice Scalia can’t find a valid reason why anyone should care about the gender of married couples, it’s time to move on. Marriage is a right to be enjoyed by all and gay marriage in Utah is here to stay.

Howard Berkes reported on NPR that after Judge Shelby ruled the state's anti-gay marriage law unconstitutional that "within minutes of the federal court decision, the Salt Lake County Clerk's office was inundated with gay couples seeking marriage licenses. And marriages were performed in the lobby and hallways long after the office was scheduled to close. "The CNN headline was quite provocative: In Utah, Judge's Ruling Ignites Same-Sex Marriage Frenzy. A same-sex marriage frenzy in Utah… wow!

It was joyful mayhem Friday night in the county clerk's office in Salt Lake City, Utah, after a federal judge struck down the state's ban on same-sex marriage, saying the law "conflicts with the United States Constitution's guarantees of equal protection and due process under the law."

"I proposed to my partner of 27 years in June, but I said, 'We're not going to get married until we can get married in Utah," state Sen. Jim Dabakis, who is openly gay, told CNN.

"He said, 'So, that's just an excuse never to get married.'"

Not so. As soon as the judge's ruling was reported, "We ran down here," Dabakis said as he surveyed the crowd. "It's a madhouse down here. There's hundreds of people, wedding certificates are being issued, there's marriages taking place all over the hallways. Everybody's embracing. It's just a warm, wonderful moment in the state of Utah."

In striking down the state law, which voters had approved in 2004, U.S. District Court Judge Robert J. Shelby wrote in a 53-page ruling that the state's "current laws deny its gay and lesbian citizens their fundamental right to marry and, in so doing, demean the dignity of these same-sex couples for no rational reason.

"Accordingly, the court finds that these laws are unconstitutional," he said.

God's revenge for the Mormon Church spending millions of dollars taking away the right to marry from California LGBT couples? There has been a lot of speculation from Twitter wags in that direction.

At least 4 Utah counties refused issuing marriage licenses to same sex couples on Friday. Utah is a very Republican state. The 4 counties are even more Republican than the state. Obama only took 25% of the statewide vote last year. Here's how much of the vote he took in the 4 counties that refused to give marriage licenses to LGBT couples:

• Davis- 18%
• Utah- 10%
• Washington- 16%
• Weber- 26%

Utah and Davis counties are, respectively, the second and third most populous counties in the state. Utah County includes Provo, Orem and Lehi and Davis County encompasses the suburbs north of Salt Lake City, including Layton, Bountiful and Clearfield. It's 72% Mormon. (Utah County is 88.1% Mormon).

As Ryan explained up top, Governor Herbert, a Republican and a homophobe, was not pleased. "I am very disappointed an activist federal judge is attempting to override the will of the people of Utah" and, like the Elders of the Mormon Church itself, he feels that the courts will eventually rule in favor of bigotry. The state's acting Attorney General, Brian Tarbet, who took over when the last corrupt GOP homophobe, John Swallow, was forced to resign last month, ran to the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver to seek an emergency stay to stop the marriages immediately. His arguments for a stay are very weak and not likely to get very far. (UPDATE: They were turned down today.) Let's hope Ryan was right when he predicted that marriage equality in Utah is "here to stay."

Utah, 18th state with marriage equality… and first red state with it

UPDATE: And This Is What Everyone Was Waiting For Monday Morning:

Judge Shelby also warned county clerks in the backward, more theocratic parts of Utah, like Box Elder County, that if they refuse to marry couples, they are breaking the law. So far today almost 300 gay couples have gotten married, just in Salt Lake County alone. The county reports that there have been 312 marriages today, mostly between gay couples. Before today, the county record for most marriages in one day: 82. Meanwhile Cache County, Box Elder County and several others closed their doors and won't grant marriage licenses to anyone rather than allow LGBT couples to get married. Other counties that are refusing to follow the law and grant marriage licenses are Carbon, Juab, Piute, Sevier, Utah and, I believe, Sanpete. What monsters! It's worth mentioning, however, that most of the counties in the state are cooperating and issuing marriage licenses to both gay and straight couples.