Portland, Maine — Following its approval last month from voters, the state of Maine has officially begun to issue homosexual “marriage” licenses, and is now also recognizing same-sex “marriages” in other states as attested to by new residents.
In Portland, city hall opened its doors at midnight to allow homosexuals to obtain the licenses as soon as the clock turned twelve. Other cities also created special hours on Saturday to make provision for the licenses to be issued.
According to reports, there were 28 people present in Portland at midnight, the majority of which were middle-aged. Some that were involved in the event had made available free carnations and cupcakes, and a jazz trio played music. Ten of those in line chose to have a ceremony upon obtaining the document.
As previously reported, on Election Day, Maine was one of three states that approved same-sex “marriage” at the polls. Washington state and Maryland also passed the initiative by several percentage points. Licenses began being issued several weeks ago in Washington, and Maryland is scheduled to do so on January 1st.
Following the vote in Maine, Governor Paul LaPage signed off on the matter and made provision for the law to go into effect in thirty days — December 29th. The state had once approved homosexual “marriage” in the legislature, but it was later overturned by a statewide referendum.
The other six states that currently acknowledge homosexual relationships, New York, Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont and the District of Columbia, have all done so in the legislature. With the exception of Maine, Washington and Maryland, in over 30 states across the country where the matter has been presented to the people for a vote, it has been struck down significantly.
Earlier this year, North Carolina citizens reiterated, as with other states that have already voted on the matter, that the majority of Americans do not believe that the government should tamper with the Biblical definition of marriage. While the state of North Carolina already prohibited same-sex “marriage,” the constitutional amendment was introduced on the ballot to prevent current laws from being struck down by activist judges.
The state of Minnesota also voted on a constitutional amendment this year, but failed to obtain the majority vote for passage. As in North Carolina, same-sex “marriage” is already illegal in Minnesota.
While states such as Maine are proceeding in issuing licenses, the matter of homosexual “marriage” is set to be reviewed by the United States Supreme Court next year. As previously reported, earlier this month, the nine justices on the bench accepted California’s Proposition 8 case, as well as a challenge to the federal Defense of Marriage Act.
According to reports, the court will decide whether states must permit homosexuals to “marry,” and when states do so, whether the federal government can disagree and choose to limit its recognition of marriage to solely the joining together of a husband and wife.
Barack Obama has been advocating the elimination of DOMA since he first ran for president in 2008.
“We cannot defend the federal government poking its nose into what states are doing and putting the thumb on the scale against same-sex couples,” he stated.
However, Brian Brown of the National Organization for Marriage told reporters that the definition of marriage cannot be changed by any branch of government.
“Unions of two men or two women are not the same thing as a marriage between a man and a woman,” he said. “And only marriage between a man and a woman can connect children to their mother and father and their parents to the children.”
Both the Proposition 8 and DOMA cases will be heard in March 2013, with decisions issued sometime in June.
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