CWA: Judicial Activist Rules Iowa Defense of Marriage Act Unconstitutional

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 31, 2007

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Homosexual couples begin applying for marriage licenses

Washington, DC – Polk County Judge Robert Hanson (not to be confused with convicted spy Robert Hanssen) has miraculously divined that the framers of the Iowa constitution really intended that Iowans of the same sex must be allowed to “marry” one another.  The unelected Hanson struck down Iowa’s Defense of Marriage Act on Thursday ruling that, “Couples, such as Plaintiffs, who are otherwise qualified to marry one another may not be denied licenses to marry or certificates of marriage or in any other way prevented from entering into a civil marriage pursuant to Iowa Code Chapter 595 by reason of the fact that both persons compromising such a couple are of the same sex.”   

Within two hours of the ruling homosexual couples began applying for marriage licenses. 

Addressing the decision, Matt Barber, Policy Director for Cultural Issues with Concerned Women for America (CWA) said, “Through his actions, Judge Hanson has arrogantly ignored the will of the people by cavalierly disregarding a law constitutionally enacted by Iowa citizens through their elected representatives in 1998.

“Once again we have another renegade judge abusing the authority he’s been granted and arbitrarily legislating from the bench.  Hanson is a judicial activist.  He’s just one man – a county judge – who has haughtily trampled on the concept of separation of powers, the elected state legislature and the people of Iowa in order to push his own radical agenda. 

“It’s preposterous to think that the framers of the Iowa constitution could have even imagined that the document they were drafting would someday be distorted in such a way as to force “‘gay’ marriage” upon Iowa. 

“This case proves once again that the only way to assure that the institution of marriage is protected – and not radically redefined into oblivion – is to pass a federal marriage amendment,” concluded Barber.

The case is expected to be appealed to the Iowa Supreme Court. 

Concerned Women for America is the nation’s largest public policy women’s organization.