Commenting on last week's ACLU suit to overturn Nebraska's constitutional ban on gay marriage the student newspaper, distributed to about 25,000 people on the Lincoln Campus,
had this to say in an op/ed about
Bruning, Heineman and cagey incoming governor Pete Ricketts, who said little about LGBT rights during his campaign, included
nothing about them on his web site, and even
placed Internet ads next to gay content: — until he was elected, at which point he loudly proclaimed that he would
"defend" the state against the ACLU's marriage lawsuit.
Governor-elect Pete Ricketts stated, “Our citizens here in the state
voted overwhelmingly that marriage is between a man and a woman,” and
vowed to defend the constitutional ban. While Ricketts is correct that
our electorate voted to ban same-sex marriages, it’s indubitably
unconstitutional and an example of the tyranny of the majority. In a
constitutional democracy, Ricketts’ argument is fallacious. What if we
voted overwhelmingly to allow slavery? Or only allow rich, white men run
for political office? Or appoint the badger as the official Nebraska
State mammal? Some things are simply inalienably wrong or violate the
Constitution.
...Governor-elect Ricketts, Governor Heineman, Attorney General Bruning and
the rest of the defendants in Waters v. Heineman, your names will be
included on a list littered with the likes of George Wallace, Joseph
McCarthy, David Duke and Roger Taney. The oath of office requires you to
support the Constitution, not betray it. Blame your generation,
religious beliefs or support for states’ rights all you want. In the
end, history will not reflect kindly on you.
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