Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger today expressed hope that the California Supreme Court would overturn Proposition 8, the ballot initiative that outlawed same-sex marriage. He also predicted that the 18,000 gay and lesbian couples who have already married would not be affected by the initiative.
"It's unfortunate, obviously, but it's not the end," Schwarzenegger said in an interview on CNN this morning. "I think that we will again maybe undo that, if the court is willing to do that, and then move forward from there and again lead in that area."
With his favorable comments toward gay marriage, the governor's thinking appears to have evolved on the issue.
In past statements, he has said he personally believes marriage should be between a man and a woman and has rejected legislation authorizing same-sex marriage. Yet he has also said he would not care if same-sex marriage were legal, saying he believed that such an important societal issue should be determined by the voters or the courts.
Following that position, he publicly opposed Proposition 8, which amends the state Constitution to declare that "only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California."
Today, Schwarzenegger urged backers of gay marriage to follow the lesson he learned as a bodybuilder trying to lift weights that were too heavy for him at first. "I learned that you should never ever give up. . . . They should never give up. They should be on it and on it until they get it done."
I have highlighted particular aspects of Schwarzenegger's comments in order to respond to them. First of all, I, like the Governor, hope that the California Supreme Court will strike down Proposition 8 as unconstitutional, and I believe they will. The argument that this initiative constitutional amendment was an illegal attempt to revise and not amend our state's highest law is a compelling one to many. An even more compelling rationale for overturning Proposition 8 is defending the principle that "the civil rights of people should not be subject to a popular vote" as MadProfessah was quoted in Saturday's Los Angeles Times.
Secondly, as one of the estimated 18,000 couples who was married in the 173 days between June 16th and Election Day that same-sex marriage was legal in California, I agree with Governor Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Brown that those marriages should be unaffected by an attempt to change the law after they were recognized by the State.
My third comment is one of bemusement. Since when did Arnold Schwarzenegger become a cheerleader for marriage equality? "[N]ever give up... get it done"? California would have had marriage equality three years ago if the Governor had not vetoed Mark Leno's marriage equality bill in August 2005. It's very disingenuous for Arnold to be quoted so enthusiastically in favor of legalizing same-sex marriage 5 days AFTER the election. Where was he 5 weeks ago, or even a week ago before the election? Oh, yeah, he was campaigning for the McCain/Palin ticket, half of which wanted to amend the FEDERAL constitution to ban marriage equality. It's not just politically expedient or disingenous to vigorously oppose Proposition 8 after it passes. Schwarzenegger is revealing political cowardice which reminds me of someone. Who would that be? His predecessor: California Governor Gray Davis.
Joe.My.God has posted the video of Governator Schwarzenegger speaking with CNN's John King:
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