Marriage Equality Hearing Tomorrow

by Be_Devine [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

Tomorrow in San Francisco, the California Supreme Court will hear the consolidated cases regarding the issue of same-sex marriage equality. The San Francisco Chronicle has a very detailed article about the issue and background.  For those interested in watching the argument, it will be televised on the California channel, on SFGTV (Channel 26) in San Francisco, and can be watched online here.  The hearing is from 9 a.m. to noon.

My fear for tomorrow is whether the reactionary right wing in California has been successful in putting the fear of god (quite literally) into our Supreme Court Justices.  A decade ago, the right wing crazies funded a campaign to remove Chief Justice Ronald George and Justice Ming Chin because of their vote in one single case.  In that case, Ron George and Ming Chin cast the swing votes that overturned a law requiring that minors obtain parental notification for an abortion.  The far right wing went nuts and targeted these two Supreme Court Justices for removal.  In the end, George and Chin raised a considerable war chest and both won another 12-year term.

Ron George and Ming Chin will be on the ballot again in two years.  On the one hand, the fact that they beat back the right wing crazies and won re-election may have emboldened them to make the right decision even when it takes political courage.  On the other hand, they may both be fearful about a signing on to a controversial decision that could inflame the right wing so soon before they are on the ballot.

I hope it’s the former.  Our Supreme Court Justices need to be insulated from political retribution so they can make the decisions that the law requires, even when those decision are unpopular.