Another round in Florida

Back in the 1970s Anita Bryant was a successful singer and promoter of orange juice. Then Miami passed a non-discrimination law to protect their gay population. Bryant was incensed and worked diligently to overturn the law. She was successful. A few other places around the country followed her lead. Bryant's career collapsed and a few months later, while on TV, she got a pie to the face.

Florida's Attorney General Pam Bondi is being compared to Bryant by the Tampa Bay Times. The paper cites her relentlessness as part of their comparison, then also lists her clumsy communication skills, incompetence, and her antagonization of both the gay and Hispanic voters. Thus the Times gave her its "Loser of 2014" award.

The latest part is the mess over whether Florida clerks will issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Bondi is doing all she can to confuse, rather than clarify, the situation.

The next day Bondi took action. She issued a press release saying the person who should clear up the confusion is the judge who declared the law unconstitutional. She couldn't just do it herself? The confusion is whether the ruling applies to the couple named in the suit or to the whole state.

In the meantime dozens of corporations have signed a brief as part of Florida's case before the 11th Circuit. They say they are "forced to bear unnecessary cost, complexity, and risk" as well as having to discriminate against their employees. They want same-sex couples to be able to marry in Florida on January 6.