In the latest episode of the legal-affairs podcast Lawyer2Lawyer, we look at the legal showdown over same-sex marriage in Alabama. In January, a federal judge struck down the state’s ban on same-sex marriage as unconstitutional. Then, last week, the Alabama Supreme Court snubbed its nose at the federal court and ordered the state’s probate judges to stop issuing marriage licenses to same sex couples. We debate the legal issues surrounding this state of affairs with three guests:
- Harry Mihet is the vice president of legal affairs and chief litigation counsel for Liberty Counsel, an international nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing religious freedom, the sanctity of life, and the family. Since joining up in 2008, Mihet has participated in many critical issues, including the defense and passage of Florida’s Marriage Amendment, and the defense of individuals charged with contempt for prayer. He has been featured on Fox and Friends, On the Record with Greta Van Susteren, and Fox News Radio.
- Elliot Mincberg is a senior fellow at People For the American Way, where he helps guide and oversee their work on religious liberty, separation of church and state, and other constitutional law issues. Prior to that, he was their senior vice president, general counsel, and legal director. In addition, he has served as chief counsel for oversight and investigations at the House Judiciary Committee and senior counsel and general deputy assistant secretary for congressional and intergovernmental relations at the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
- Ronald Krotoszynski is a professor of law at the University of Alabama School of Law, where he teaches courses in Constitutional Law, the First Amendment, and Federal Civil Rights. Pertinent to today’s discussion, he clerked for the Honorable Frank M. Johnson of the US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and has written or been featured in The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Huffington Post, and The Wall Street Journal.
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