Michigan Same-sex Marriage Ban Case to be a Focal Point in the U.S. Supreme Court

National Marriage Challenge

Rick Pluta

In the next week the United States Supreme court will hear oral arguments that will determine the legality of same-sex marriage for the states. Michigan Radio Network’s Capital Bureau Chief Rick Pluta joins Stephen Henderson to look at what’s going to happen in court: 

• Pluta says one critical issue that has yet to come up is the level of scrutiny, this means how aggressively the state should be justifying its defense of the Michigan marriage amendment. He says the court will need to determine if the voter’s decision was reasonable and this will set the bar for the state’s defense.
• Stephen Henderson notes that for the attorney general the argument is backed by his responsibility to uphold the voter’s choice to ban gay marriage, it is not necessarily an argument against gay marriage for him. Pluta explains that a previous Michigan centered Supreme Court case on affirmative action set the attorney general’s agenda. He says this case placed a large importance on the voters’ decisions.
• The shift of public opinion in the recent years has changed how many people in the state view gay marriage since 11 years ago. Pluta talked with the people who ran the same-sex ban back then and they intend to approach it from a different angle the next time it comes up.

Click the audio link above to hear the full conversation.