Washingtonpost.com:
RICHMOND — Virginia’s National Guard will provide health insurance and other benefits to same-sex couples, Gov. Robert F. McDonnell said Thursday, one day after a state delegate urged him to defy a new Pentagon directive to treat all marriages equally.
Anyone want to take a wild guess who that delegate crying for defiance is? You got it! Sideshow Bob.
In a letter to McDonnell this week, Del. Robert G. Marshall (R-Prince William) warned that providing the benefits would violate the state constitutional ban on gay marriage.
“As Commander of the Virginia National Guard[,] what will you do to secure that the spirit and letter of the [state] Constitution regarding marriage will be upheld?” Marshall wrote.
McDonnell, a social conservative who has walked a fine line on gay-rights issues as governor, said he would abide by the Pentagon policy that Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel announced in August.
The policy came in response to a Supreme Court decision striking down a portion of the Defense of Marriage Act. The high court ruling requires the federal government to provide legally married gay couples with the same federal tax, health, Social Security and other benefits provided to heterosexual couples.
“Our position is, we’re going to follow all of the Department of Defense rules and regulations and policies,” McDonnell told a gathering of reporters after an unrelated event on Capitol Square. “Ninety percent of the funding for the state National Guard comes from the federal government, so we intend to follow all of the DOD guidelines.”
Marshall sent the letter to the governor after seeing a news report about the Texas National Guard, which has said it will not provide benefits for same-sex couples because doing so would conflict with the Texas Constitution and the state’s “Family Code.”
Bob, Bob, Bob. We fought a war 150 years ago that pretty much settled that the federal government trumps state government. Follow the rules. Bob Marshall needs to realize that the defiance he recommends will only get Virginia sued by the U.S. government. Haven’t we wasted enough money with our far right-wing elected officials suing over their ideology? The Cuccinelli war on Michael Manning and climate control comes to mind. How much did that ideological debacle cost Virginia taxpayers?
Governor McDonnell, who hasn’t gotten much right lately, is doing the right thing. He is authorizing the Virginia National Guard to pay health insurance and benefits to same-sex married couples per the directive of the Pentagon. I expect that soon Virginia’s “defense of marriage” amendment to the Virginia Constitution will be overturned. Then where will Marshall hang his Hate Hat?
