Prop. 8 Supporters Lose the AG’s Office

(Consider this post the jus to Ames’ prime rib.)

Boy, have I missed the kinetic energy of California politics. The state truly is the battleground, the test lab, the neural center for new American law and policy.

On Wednesday, the Attorney General’s office filed a 111-page brief with the California Supreme Court requesting the Court order the gay-marriage ban unconstitutional. The AG’s move is more than a little surprising as the office’s responsibility is to defend state law, and it was commonly presumed since Proposition 8 becomes law on January 1, 2009, Jerry Brown and his team would make the usual arguments why the Court should allow the state constitution to be amended.

But the AG’s brief argues the amendment is unconstitutional because it compromises inalienable rights already protected by the constitution. (Orders, briefs, and other documents filed on the case can be found at the California Supreme Court’s site.)

This is going to be a very interesting fight. SCOTUS can run, but it can’t hide: The Prop. 8 battle is eventually going to force the Court to resolve this issue once and for all.