In what many are taking as a hint of the court’s action in April concerning the fight on same-sex marriage, the Supreme Court ordered this week that the state of Alabama cannot block same-sex couples from obtaining licenses.
And now the fight is escalating after Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore ordered the state’s probate judges to refuse to comply with the Supreme Court’s order and instead refuse to issue marriage licenses for same-sex couples.
With the exception of a handful, nearly 60 of Alabama’s counties have either refused requests for licenses or closed licensing office altogether in a direct affront to the federal decree.
The Court’s mandate makes Alabama the 37th state in which SSM is technically legal despite the state having voted against it. It highlights the growing fight that transcends the issue of marriage concerning state sovereignty and to what extent the federal government will challenge the 10th Amendment to the Constitution.
