Discussion: Expert: Kim Davis' Legal Claim Is 'Clear Loser' That 'Will Continue To Lose'

TPM Article Topics
1

Discussion for article #240258

2

“Almighty God created the races white, black, yellow, malay and red, and he placed them on separate continents. And but for the interference with his arrangement there would be no cause for such marriages. The fact that he separated the races shows that he did not intend for the races to mix.”
-Leon M. Bazile (the lower court judge in Loving v. VA, offering his reasoning in support of anti-miscegination laws)

11 Likes
3

She’s got a pretty sweet gig. Doesn’t do her job, is a celeb of the far right, and still pulls down $80k. I imagine her next job will be evangelical TV minister, with the unusual twist of being a “true believer” as she fleeces the rubes on a larger stage. $80k will be chicken feed money.

9 Likes
4

LOL that’s funny… it was Bible-banging slave traders who transported all those black folks from the continent where his god separated the races.

13 Likes
5

Funny that, as the composer of Amazing Grace was a slave trader.

9 Likes
6

in frederick douglass’ autobiography he said the reason slaves were singing was because they were forced to- singing let slave owners know where they were

2 Likes
7

Same sex couples holding a marriage license with Kim Davis’ name on it should send large, colorful thank you notes to her for blessing their union (or better yet, go on TV and stress that they are married with her approval). If that doesn’t send her blood pressure up into stroke range, I don’t know what will!

34 Likes
8

Think about this…

A socioeconomic system similar to that of Europe.

Without gun control laws
Without paid maternity leave
Without adequate paid vacations
and (until recently) without a shred of health insurance for all (ACA is a STEP, folks)

With the greatest amount of time spent at work
With the greatest degree of economic inequality

All self-inflicted, by the political power of the kinds of people who would actually support someone like Kim Davis…all the while being totally and WILLFULLY ignorant of the reality depicted by the first 55 words of this post.

13 Likes
9

Here are five beliefs that set Pentecostals apart from other Christians:

  1. Pentecostal followers do not believe in Trinity

  2. Pentecostals believe in faith or divine healing.

  3. Pentecostals practice ‘modesty’. Women avoid wearing pants, avoid wearing jewelry and makeup, and not cut their hair. Hemlines of dresses should be below the knee while sleeves should reach past the elbow. Women should not swim with men. Pentecostal men should practice modesty with hair that does not cover the tops of their ears or reach their shirt collar. Both men and women should avoid movies, sports, and dancing.

  4. Pentecostals believe the Holy Spirit causes ‘faithful’ to speak in a language unknown to the speaker, or Speaking in Tongues.

  5. Pentecostal followers participate in foot washing (like Catholics on Holy Saturday) but with greater frequency.

3 Likes
10

I really wish people would make this connection more often. Very similar Biblical arguments were used to justify banning interracial marriage, were used to justify Jim Crow, and even slavery. What’s to stop the next county clerk or cake baker or restaurateur from deciding they don’t want to serve mixed race couples/families, or they don’t want to serve a mixed race group of friends? What Davis and Huckabee are asking for is a return to the bad old days.

10 Likes
11

It is unlikely the Kentucky state legislature would impeach Davis. The
Republican president of the state Senate spoke at a rally at the state
Capitol and filed an amicus brief asking Bunning not to hold Davis in
contempt of court for defying his order. Several lawmakers have already filed legislation for the 2016 session that would exempt county clerks from having to issue marriage licenses.

I’m not understanding this at all. Are the people of Kentucky so f*cking stupid that they’ll allow this clerk (and ANY) clerk to deny any marriage licenses and still keep their jobs?? It’s one thing if the position paid no money at all and was just on some sort of volunteer basis. But what exactly would they be paid for if they’re not doing the job they were hired to do??

If they’re not willing to impeach these *ssholes, at what point would they do so?

4 Likes
12

Yes

With apologies to Plucky!

6 Likes
13

Staver said the licenses issued to same-sex couples by Davis’ employees last week were not valid since they were not given under Davis’ authority. But the Kentucky attorney general’s office said it believes otherwise.

It's noteworthy no one in the state's judicial/executive branches is willing to say definitively the marriage licenses are valid in the absence of Davis' County Clerk imprimatur. That's likely an issue eventually subject to further litigation, a fact Davis and her counsel may very well be correct in citing. Another unfortunate complication for LGBT couples in Kentucky, one inflicted by Davis merely for the sake of causing pain and angst.
3 Likes
14

1st year law student could’ve told everyone this. Davis and her ilk have it so blatantly and unrelentingly backwards it’s not even funny. This isn’t “Cheryl’s Math Problem” for fuck’s sake.

2 Likes
15

The people of KY, as a whole, have no ability to impeach this woman. Only the General Assembly can impeach her and the State Senate is ran by Bible beating Republicans who have no political will or desire to impeach her. This is no different than what would happen in literally any state with similar laws and a government controlled partly by Republicans.

Also, the General Assembly isn’t in session right now. They won’t be returning to session until January. The governor could call a special session, but that would cost the state hundreds of thousands of dollars we already don’t have.There is literally nothing anyone can do right now that doesn’t involve a lot of unnecessary expense, and even then there’s no guarantee Republicans wouldn’t block it.

11 Likes
16

And I think we should say further it’s not just the historic misuse of the Bible in discussions of rights, it’s that any use of the Bible or anyone else’s holy book is inappropriate to the discussion. I hate to contradict my fundie friends (do have a couple) but this is not a Christian nation; it is explicitly not an anything nation. If the Bible unequivocally said “No gay marriage!” across the top of every page it would still be irrelevant. If the people and the courts approve same-sex marriage, boom, that’s it. Nobody is forcing you to marry them in your church. You do have to bake cakes and hand out licenses if that’s your job. You don’t have to attend the wedding though, and frankly nobody asked you.

19 Likes
17

Isn’t shifting the job to somebody else just passing the buck? What if they have the same objection? I just want to imagine how tolerant they would be about this if it were not pandering to the conservative base.

18

Adam sure knows how to bury the lede.
I had to plow through all the background to find the text that supported the headline.

Amateur hour.

1 Like
19

They sang her “Amazing Grace,” huh? Classy.

20

Well, a renounced slave trader actually!

2 Likes