County to issue same-sex marriage licenses (NEW MEXICO TODAY 2/20/04)

AP via News Channel 15 wane.com ^ | 2/20/2004

[cyncooper]

Bernalillo, New Mexico-AP -- A county clerk in New Mexico says it has nothing to do with "politics or morals."

Sandoval County Clerk Victoria Dunlap says the county plans to issue marriage licenses for same-sex couples.

She made the decision after asking for an opinion from the county attorney, who said New Mexico law isn't clear on the issue. He also says refusing to issue marriage licenses to gay couples could open the county to legal action.

State law defines marriage as a civil contract between contracting parties. It doesn't mention gender.

The issue of gay marriage has stirred controversy in other states. San Francisco granted hundreds of same-sex marriage licenses in defiance of California state law.

And lawmakers in Massachusetts expect to resume a debate on a constitutional amendment that would ban gay marriage.

[cyncooper]

I heard this news on ABC radio news a short while ago.

They actually played a clip of this woman who decided to issue the licenses. Her rationale is that she doesn't deny gay people the right to register to vote so why should she deny them a marriage license.

This is the type of thinking we are facing.

[cyncooper]

Ping

[AntiGuv]

Sandoval County borders Santa Fe County on the west:

[mewzilla]

LOL. And I saw a thread a few minutes ago discussing Tubby Richardson's thinking about a presidential run in '08. And I've heard the Toons are trying to get him on Kerry's short-list for veep. Couldn't happen to a more well-deserving governor.

[Constitution Day]

Having a gay old time down there, huh?

[ElkGroveDan]

I guess those cowboys are gettin' a little lonely out on the range.

[ican'tbelieveit]

Just so you know, Bernalillo is Albuquerque... not what you would call either cowboys or range.

[ican'tbelieveit]

And Sandoval's primary population is Rio Rancho.

[martin_fierro]

WTF is it with New Mexico?

[ElkGroveDan]

Well maybe they're coming in OFF the range for a bath, a meal, and marriage having become good friends the night before.

[KQQL]

WELCOME TO GAY AMERICA 2004....

[tomahawk]

This nation is descending into anarchy.

We are going down, and there may be no recovery.

Only nations in decline abandon 5,000 years of legal understanding on a whim.

[ican'tbelieveit]

They don't have to come off of the range... if you get into the North Valley of ABQ and Corrales, it is filled with them already. Not even touching what exists in Santa Fe.

[ican'tbelieveit]

For the most part, it is just that Santa Fe-Albuquerque corridor. Once you get out of that area, people are pretty normal. Unfortunately, they are outnumbered 3-1.

[ican'tbelieveit]

Oh, yeah... Taos-Santa Fe-Albuquerque.

[Doctor Stochastic]

Isn't New Mexico a community property state? The ensuing divorces should be interesting as should things when the temporary federal marriage penalty tax ban expires.

[wilmington2]

If government no longer enforces the law, why pay taxes as the services are being withheld.

[dljordan]

"This nation is descending into anarchy". This isn't anarchy my friend, this a carefully thought out push to normalize homosexuality throughout America. Even the school children are being indoctrinated.

[ElkGroveDan]

I better drop this discussion. I lived in Montana for four years and worked on a dude ranch one summer. So I'm treading on thin ground here.

[KQQL]

Evangelicals frustrated by Bush

http://www.washtimes.com/national/20040219-115609-3712r.htm

[Lunatic Fringe]

Well it's porbably the right choice, since state law doesn't prohibit gay marriage.

[MegaSilver]

A county clerk in New Mexico says it has nothing to do with "politics or morals."

Paint it how you want. It has EVERYTHING to do with BOTH.

[rebeliam]

"refusing to issue marriage licenses to gay couples could open the county to legal action"

as if issuing gay marriage licenses won't result in legal action.

[CedarDave]

The legislature went home at noon yesterday until next January. She waited to announce this until they left town, for obvious reasons.

Pretty soon you will be able to get your gay marriage license and then have to breathe into your anti-drunk driver interlock device so that you can start your car before you go visit the Justice of the Peace.

[Tijeras_Slim]

WTF is it with New Mexico?

Haven't you been following the other NM threads? We're all drunk!

[george wythe]

Next stop, Ft Lauderdale, Florida.

Or New York, New York.

Come on liberal bastions, time to get into gay-marriage bandwagon.

[CedarDave]

ROTFLMAO!!

[KQQL]

@

[barkingdog]

You don't suppose ms Dunlap could be gay, do you? noooooo, of course not.

[Constitution Day]

LMAO!!

[Aquinasfan]

Anarchy is here. And why not?

[nina0113]

ping

[CedarDave]

40 minutes Santa Fe to Bernalillo. Lots cheaper than SF to San Francisco.

[EdReform]

Ping

What We Can Do To Help Defeat the "Gay" Agenda

Homosexual Agenda: Categorical Index of Links (Version 1.1)

[cyncooper]

The legislature went home at noon yesterday until next January. She waited to announce this until they left town, for obvious reasons.

That is a very interesting and important detail and I thank you for that information.

It seems to me that any legislature worth its salt would immediately convene an emergency meeting in the face of such an outrageous maneuver.

[randita]

This whole fiasco is reminiscent of Florida 2000 where Democrats ignored the law for weeks until they finally got a rude awakening. I expect this will go on for a bit more time before it runs against a brick wall.

For some reason, Democrats abandoned their policy of incrementalism this time around and they will pay for their hastiness.

[Lady Eileen]

Rush is talking about this now.

[Timesink]

This is the type of thinking we are facing.

It's going to be a boon to Bush's reelection campaign. The left is shooting themselves in the foot again. To paraphrase the late great Jimi Hendrix, "The wind ... cries ... WELLSTONE!"

[KQQL]

H.R. 3396 (Defense of Marriage Act) Kerry (D-MA), Nay
Signed the Letter Backing Gay Marriage - massequality.org 07/12/02

"Kerry indicated he might eventually back gay marriages if a public consensus developed for them," Brownstein Notes.
http://www.massinsider.com/archives/001261.phtml

[cyncooper]

This ought not be blamed on President Bush who is four square against this travesty.

It is up to the states, now up to three--Mass., CA and NM--to deal with this.

This does illustrate why the president foresaw the need for a Constitutional amendment as a most likely needed remedy.

[KQQL]

I am not blaming him...

[nickcarraway]

ping

[templar]

This is the type of thinking we are facing.

This is the result of people deciding for themselves what the law means instead of having a legal authority determine such (preferably legislative, usually the Courts).

Gevernment officials, particularly of County clerk status, should not be allowed to decide law in cases where there is any ambiguity. Since this is an obvious issue nationwide, every legislature in the Country should be addressing it ASAP. If the legislatures don't address it preemptively, it will be decided by the Courts, and I don't see any legal (14th ammendment) reasoning that would disallow gay marriage in absence of legislative law.

[Teacher317]

The more cities and idiots that single-handedly challenge the law, the more naitonal this issue becomes. A national referendum on November is a-comin'!

[barkingdog]

It would seem that, the only people left in america who have the guts to stand up, and fight for what they believe in, is the gay community. Whats wrong with the rest of us? If this is what we have become?

[MediaMole]

What is with New Mexico?

Gay marriage and mandated breathalyzer ignition interlocks on all cars.

[Brian_Baldwin]

This is spreading, and Bush isn’t doing crap. I figured the so-called Governor wouldn’t do anything anytime soon, but I expect the President to act, and he isn’t, instead we all hear about the plan. For some reason, there are some governors, neo-conservatives, and presidents, who think that we don’t have to directly, with forceful and immediate counterattack, confront the left, oppose the enemy, but somehow, all we need to do is accommodate them and then the extremes of their attack upon society will stop, or at least, take a vacation. My question is, the left is, outside of the law, assaulting society, raping it, with no respect for democracy or the will of the people, and therefore the enemy of society, and my question to Bush, who isn’t doing anything about it, is, how do we accommodate the left as enemy of society? I am told, Bush has a plan. I have been told that a lot in the last many, many months, that it’s a plan, a plan, master plan, the plan is being talked about, yes sir, it’s all part of the plan so just shut up, just go along with the plan, even though he won’t tell us what the plan is, but don’t ask questions, the plan is all about planning the left into it, planning the left into a situation, the plan is to do nothing but plan because the plan is to let the left do it to themself and the plan it to “let them plan themselves into it” because the plan is actually to simply let the enemy engage all their plans and we do nothing except say we also have a plan but maybe we won’t engage it because the plan is to let them engage all their plans and, “self destruct” if you will. And I am wondering, what is Bush doing for me? And I ask Bush, can you do something? Instead of the plan, why not just do something? I ask this so-called compassionate conservative President, if we plan the enemy “into it” are we likely to grant the enemy true privilege of refusal of everything? Refusal to obey the will of the people, to follow law?

So what’s going to happen is, our society, it’s future, will be determine by the aggression of the left. The future will be determined by unelected Maoists in court robes and the future will be determined by an aggressive minority which has a large enough constituency to hijack a city, in no different manner than twelve hijackers can take over planes and drive them into buildings, and then they will determine the future. Because we are all waiting to hear more about the plan.

Bush isn’t doing jack.

[AntiGuv]

You seem to forget perhaps that Democrats are exceedingly sneaky creatures. They'll inch along for decade after decade and then WHAM! they rush you all at once seemingly out of nowhere.. They seem to think it's time to make the leap on this one, and anyone who disagrees is so very, very deeply evil.

And I say that though I actually support permitting gays to marry to make them a bit more stable in society. LOL! But, I support doing it properly through the legislatures whenever there's a genuine consensus, not by judges, mayors, and county clerks rewriting the law to suit their whims.

[cyncooper]

This is spreading, and Bush isn’t doing crap. I figured the so-called Governor wouldn’t do anything anytime soon, but I expect the President to act,

What would you have him do?

He has stated many times that if these liberal activists engage in this behavior the solution is a Constitutional amendment.

[Brian_Baldwin]

He says, he says. He says, and I'm sick of it. Weak. That is what it's all about. We are letting them determine the future. We are letting the SPECTACLE determine our future. And you Bushies are always there. Doing nothing.