Colorado U.S. Senators Michael Bennet and Mark Udall today signed onto a legal brief to the United States Supreme Court calling the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) unconstitutional and a denial of equal protection.
The brief, signed by 212 lawmakers from both the Senate and House of Representatives, was filed today in the Supreme Court in the case of U.S. vs. Edith Schlain Windsor, a landmark challenge to Section 3 of DOMA. Windsor is an 83-year-old widow who had to pay over $350,000 in estate taxes because of DOMA.
Section 3 of DOMA defines marriage for purposes of federal law as “only a legal union between one man and one woman,” excluding legally married same-sex couples from all marriage-based federal responsibilities and rights.
The amicus brief filed today makes clear that many members of Congress believe that this section should be struck down because there simply is no legitimate federal interest in denying married same-sex couples the legal security, rights and responsibilities that federal law provides to all other married couples. As the brief explains, “DOMA imposes a sweeping and unjustifiable federal disability on married same-sex couples.”
“The federal Defense of Marriage Act, which basically says that gay couples are not entitled to the same benefits as their straight peers, discriminates against LGBT Americans and should be overturned” Bennet said. “Loving, committed couples, regardless of their sexual orientation, should enjoy their full rights under the law, just like my wife and me.”
“We must ensure that all Americans are treated equally and fairly under federal law, regardless of whom they love,” Udall said. “There is no greater impediment to that ideal than the so-called Defense of Marriage Act, and I am proud to stand with more than 200 of my colleagues — and members of both political parties — to call on the U.S. Supreme Court to strike it down. Our laws must respect the long-term — and legal — commitments of same-sex married couples across this country.”
A total of 40 Senators and 172 members of the House signed onto the brief.
Amicus curia (literally, “friend of the court”) briefs typically provide courts with unique outside perspectives on issues.
Bennet and Udall have been strong supporters of repealing DOMA. They also championed the successful repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”
Full text of the brief here.
List of signers:
Senators:
Tammy Baldwin
Michael F. Bennet
Richard Blumenthal
Barbara Boxer
Sherrod Brown
Maria Cantwell
Benjamin Cardin
Thomas R. Carper
Christopher Coons
William “Mo” Cowan
Richard J. Durbin
Dianne Feinstein
Al Franken
Kirsten Gillibrand
Tom Harkin
Martin Heinrich
Mazie K. Hirono
Tim Kaine
Angus S. King, Jr.
Amy Klobuchar
Frank R. Lautenberg
Patrick J. Leahy
Claire McCaskill
Robert Menendez
Jeff Merkley
Barbara A. Mikulski
Christopher S. Murphy
Patty Murray
Harry Reid
Bernie Sanders
Brian Schatz
Charles E. Schumer
Jeanne Shaheen
Debbie Stabenow
Jon Tester
Mark Udall
Mark R. Warner
Elizabeth Warren
Sheldon Whitehouse
Ron Wyden
Representatives:
Robert E. Andrews
Ron Barber
Karen Bass
Joyce Beatty
Xavier Becerra
Ami Bera
Timothy H. Bishop
Earl Blumenauer
Suzanne Bonamici
Robert A. Brady
Bruce L. Braley
Corinne Brown
Julia Brownley
Cheri Bustos
Lois Capps
Michael E. Capuano
Tony Cárdenas
John C. Carney, Jr.
André Carson
Matthew A. Cartwright
Kathy Castor
Joaquin Castro
Judy Chu
David N. Cicilline
Yvette D. Clarke
Wm. Lacy Clay
Emanuel Cleaver
James E. Clyburn
Steve Cohen
Gerald E. Connolly
John Conyers, Jr.
Joe Courtney
Joseph Crowley
Elijah E. Cummings
Danny K. Davis
Susan A. Davis
Diana DeGette
John K. Delaney
Rosa L. DeLauro
Suzan K. DelBene
Theodore E. Deutch
John D. Dingell
Lloyd Doggett
Michael F. Doyle
Tammy Duckworth
Donna F. Edwards
Keith Ellison
Eliot L. Engel
Anna G. Eshoo
Elizabeth H. Esty
Sam Farr
Chaka Fattah
Bill Foster
Lois Frankel
Marcia L. Fudge
Tulsi Gabbard
John Garamendi
Joe Garcia
Alan Grayson
Al Green
Raúl M. Grijalva
Luis V. Gutierrez
Janice Hahn
Colleen W. Hanabusa
Alcee L. Hastings
Denny Heck
Brian Higgins
James A. Himes
Rush Holt
Michael M. Honda
Steven A. Horsford
Steny H. Hoyer
Jared Huffman
Steve Israel
Sheila Jackson Lee
Hakeem S. Jeffries
Eddie Bernice Johnson
Henry C. “Hank” Johnson, Jr.
Marcy Kaptur
William R. Keating
Joseph P. Kennedy III
Daniel T. Kildee
Derek Kilmer
Ann Kirkpatrick
Ann M. Kuster
James R. Langevin
John B. Larson
Barbara Lee
Sander M. Levin
John Lewis
David Loebsack
Zoe Lofgren
Alan S. Lowenthal
Nita M. Lowey
Michelle Lujan Grisham
Daniel B. Maffei
Carolyn B. Maloney
Sean Patrick Maloney
Edward J. Markey
Doris O. Matsui
Carolyn McCarthy
Betty McCollum
Jim McDermott
James P. McGovern
Jerry McNerney
Gregory W. Meeks
Grace Meng
Michael H. Michaud
George Miller
Gwen Moore
James P. Moran
Patrick Murphy
Jerrold Nadler
Grace F. Napolitano
Richard E. Neal
Gloria Negrete McLeod
Richard M. Nolan
Eleanor Holmes Norton
Beto O’Rourke
William L. Owens
Frank Pallone, Jr.
Bill Pascrell, Jr.
Ed Pastor
Donald M. Payne, Jr.
Nancy Pelosi
Ed Perlmutter
Gary C. Peters
Scott H. Peters
Chellie Pingree
Mark Pocan
Jared Polis
David E. Price
Mike Quigley
Charles B. Rangel
Lucille Roybal-Allard
Raul Ruiz
C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger
Bobby L. Rush
Tim Ryan
Linda T. Sánchez
Loretta Sanchez
John P. Sarbanes
Janice D. Schakowsky
Adam B. Schiff
Bradley S. Schneider
Allyson Y. Schwartz
Robert C. “Bobby” Scott
José E. Serrano
Carol Shea-Porter
Brad Sherman
Kyrsten Sinema
Albio Sires
Louise McIntosh Slaughter
Adam Smith
Jackie Speier
Eric Swalwell
Mark Takano
Mike Thompson
John F. Tierney
Dina Titus
Paul Tonko
Niki Tsongas
Chris Van Hollen
Juan Vargas
Marc A. Veasey
Nydia M. Velázquez
Timothy J. Walz
Debbie Wasserman Schultz
Maxine Waters
Henry A. Waxman
Peter Welch
John A. Yarmuth