Texas attorney general says county clerks can refuse *** couples

[umbertino]

Mon Jun 29, 2015 11:59am EDT

 

 

 

County clerks in Texas who object to *** marriage can refuse to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples despite last week's landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling requiring states to allow same-sex marriage, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said on Sunday.

 

The nation's top court said on Friday that the U.S. Constitution provides same-sex couples the right to wed, handing a victory to the American *** rights movement.

 

Paxton said in a statement that hundreds of public officials in Texas were seeking guidance on how to implement what he called a lawless and flawed decision by an "activist" court.

 

The state's attorney general said that while the Supreme Court justices had "fabricated" a new constitutional right, they did not diminish, overrule, or call into question the First Amendment rights to free exercise of religion.

 

"County clerks and their employees retain religious freedoms that may allow accommodation of their religious objections to issuing same-sex marriage licenses," Paxton wrote, adding that the strength of any such claim would depend on the facts of each case.

 

"Justices of the peace and judges similarly retain religious freedoms and may claim that the government cannot force them to conduct same-sex wedding ceremonies over their religious objections," Paxton wrote.

 

He noted that officials who refuse to issue marriage licenses to *** couples could expect to be sued, but he said they would have ample legal support.

 

"Numerous lawyers stand ready to assist clerks defending their religious beliefs, in many cases on a pro-bono basis, and I will do everything I can from this office to be a public voice for those standing in defense of their rights," Paxton wrote.

 

Last week's 5-4 ruling by the Supreme Court was the culmination of a long legal fight by *** rights advocates. It unleashed a torrent of emotions, both for and against the decision.

 

The ruling was the high court's most important expansion of marriage rights in the United States since its landmark 1967 ruling in the case Loving v. Virginia, which struck down state laws barring interracial marriages.

 

 

(Reporting by Daniel Wallis; Editing by Toni Reinhold)

 

 

http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/06/29/us-usa-court-gaymarriage-texas-idUSKCN0P900F20150629

Edited June 29, 2015 by umbertino

[DinarCash]

Bravo Texas!!!!!!

[chess]

ALL MY (STRAIGHT) EX'S (WILL) LIVE IN TEXAS!!!!!.......................................

[ocdude]

Sooner or later Texas will have to venture into the 20th century.

[TPSprayduster]

I wonder who will pay the fines and court cost for those clerks who are sued.  The AG says there are attorney that will take the cases for free.  Well i would be beware of this free defense fund.  Just like the not going to deploy because they thought obama was not born in the US so they would not follow his orders.  Well those folks lost careers because of listening to some other dumbasses.  I would let God fight this battle instead of running off at the mouth and encourging those to follow their religous beliefs.  In the end God has this all in his hands.

[nstoolman1]

The AG or DA can simply throw the case out if he or she wants to. They do it all the time with other cases. 

[ocdude]

So....does that mean that clerks can refuse to marry those who are pregnant before marriage?? Or  been divorced before?? Since that would be against their morals too....

Edited June 30, 2015 by ocdude

[KingGebus]

I thought there was a 3? week grace period before the ruling took effect to give time for appeals?

 

Did I misread/hear that?

[Shabibilicious]

This whole article is a moot point.....there's no such thing as a *** Texan.    

 

GO RV, then BV

[ocdude]

This whole article is a moot point.....there's no such thing as a *** Texan.    

 

GO RV, then BV

Actually, what I heard was that Texas cuts the two middle fingers off of gays.

 

 

Hook 'em horns!