Woefully underinclusive

I wrote yesterday that the 4th Circuit ruling in Virginia's same-sex marriage case prompted the AG in North Carolina to stop defending his state's ban. Not so in South Carolina. The AG there has essentially said full steam ahead. No need to change course until the Supremes rule.

Jim Burroway of Box Turtle Bulletin delves into the ruling from the 4th Circuit. The state had said the vote of the people matters. The court replied that the people's will does not warrant depriving same-sex couples of a fundamental right. The state brought forth history and tradition as good reasons. The court replied, nope. The state pulled out safeguarding the institution of marriage. The court said that allowing committed same-sex couples to marry strengthens marriage. The state tried "responsible procreation." The court replied the current law is "woefully underinclusive" – you let straight sterile couples marry. The state claimed that straight couples offer "optimal childrearing." The court said that claim has "overbroad generalizations" and the law must have a means that corresponds to its end. Therefore denying marriage to same-sex couples is a violation of the 14th Amendment.