Nadler Hails Federal Court Ruling Against the Defense of Marriage Act

Press Release

Today, Congressman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), chair of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, and sponsor of House legislation to fully repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), cheered today's federal court decision striking down Section 3 of DOMA, which defines marriage as a union between one man and one woman for the purposes of federal law. Nadler, the author of the Respect for Marriage Act, which would repeal DOMA, renewed his call for the immediate passage of his legislation.

Nadler issued the following statement:

"Today's court ruling is a historic victory in the march toward marriage equality and a vindication of the core principle of equal protection under the law. The decision clearly affirms this nation's fundamental guarantee that no class of citizens will be singled out for unequal treatment. In the ruling, the court declared what we always knew to be true -- that the federal government has no rational basis for refusing to treat the lawful marriages of same-sex couples the same as all other marriages, and that prejudice against LGBT individuals and their families is not a legitimate basis for any law.

"I have vehemently opposed DOMA since it was first introduced because it is both unconstitutional and discriminatory, and I have introduced legislation to fully repeal it. The Respect for Marriage Act, which currently has 112 cosponsors, would provide all legally married LGBT Americans and their families the full measure of protections and obligations of federal law. This legislation is more relevant today than ever, and I urge the Administration and the Congress to work actively to repeal DOMA, in its entirety, and to abandon all efforts to defend that unconstitutional and immoral law."

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