Justice Anthony Kennedy Key Figure As Supreme Court Weighs Gay Marriage

[Purveyor]

Reuters
Posted: 01/16/2015 3:52 pm EST Updated: 32 minutes ago
By Joan Biskupic

WASHINGTON, Jan 16 (Reuters) - For nearly two decades, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy has been building toward this moment in the history of gay legal rights in America.

In decisions since 1996, Kennedy has broadened the court's view of equality for gays. Now, as the court said on Friday it would consider a constitutional right to gay marriage, Kennedy is likely to be the justice who tips the balance on the nine-member court.

Predictions are risky regarding this sometimes-tentative justice, the member of the court's five-strong conservative wing most likely to join the four liberals in key rulings.

Yet the 78-year-old Californian has already laid the foundation for a possible decision extending gay marriage to all 50 states. Currently, it is legal in 36 states and Washington, D.C.

Kennedy wrote the 1996 opinion in a Colorado dispute over anti-discrimination law, denouncing government moves to make gays "unequal to everyone else."

more...

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/01/16/kennedy-supreme-court-gay-marriage_n_6489434.html

[global1]

1. Will It Be The End Of The Repubs If SCOTUS Rules Against Same Sex Marriage?.....

That's my thought. The Repubs are against it and Bush stacked SCOTUS to their liking. If SCOTUS rules against - I think their will be tremendous backlash on the Repub Party and I think that will be held against them in 2016. Any thoughts?

[msongs]

2. let's all hope the outcome will NOT be a nasty shocker going against marriage equality nt