In criticizing Oregon Attorney General
Ellen Rosenblum's decision to no longer defend the state's ban on gay
marriage, Brian Brown, president of the National Organization for
Marriage (NOM), stated that there is a “good likelihood” that
Utah will prevail at the Supreme Court in defending its ban.
Rosenblum said in an announcement
Thursday that her office would no longer defend Oregon's 2004
voter-approved constitutional amendment, calling it unconstitutional.
(Related: Oregon
AG Ellen Rosenblum won't defend state's gay marriage ban.)
Her actions were likely based on a
separate ruling handed down last month by the Ninth Circuit Court of
Appeals, which oversees Oregon. In that decision the court stated
that sexual orientation is subject to heightened scrutiny and it
reached that conclusion based on last summer's Supreme Court ruling
which struck down a key provision of the Defense of Marriage Act
(DOMA).
Brown looked to the high court's
decision to stay a lower court's ruling as proof that the bans would
ultimately be declared constitutional.
“Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum is
shamefully abandoning her constitutional duty to defend the marriage
amendment overwhelmingly enacted by the people of Oregon,” Brown
wrote. “She swore an oath of office that she would enforce all
the laws, not just those she personally agrees with. The people are
entitled to a vigorous defense of the laws they enact, and the
marriage amendment is no exception to that solemn obligation.”
“Further, Ms. Rosenblum is dead-wrong
in her conclusion that the amendment cannot be supported by rational
legal arguments. Just last June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that
regulating marriage is the purview of the states, not the federal
government. Most recently, a unanimous U.S. Supreme Court ordered a
decision to invalidate Utah's marriage amendment to be stayed,
strongly signaling that the Court believes there is a good likelihood
that the state will win its appeal against the ruling issued by an
activist federal judge.”
“Marriage is our only institution
that exists to bring men and women together to benefit the couple and
to provide an ideal environment for any children produced by their
union. It can and must be defended as a unique, essential and
profoundly good institution,” he added.