The North Carolina state Senate on Wednesday passed a bill that would let government officials exempt themselves from performing marriages due to their religious beliefs.
After a federal judge struck down the state’s gay marriage ban last year, some of the magistrates that perform marriages threatened to quit if they had to marry same-sex couples.
The bill allows the magistrates to recuse themselves from performing marriages due to a “sincerely held religious objection.” The bill does not mention gay marriages in particular and bars the magistrates from performing any marriages for six months or until they reverse their objection.
Most Republicans voted in favor of the bill, but state Sen. Jeff Tarte (R) told the News-Observer that he decided not to vote for the bill after grappling with the issue for a while.
“This keeps me up at night like you would not believe,” Tarte said. “This is about trying to do the right thing.”
Republican Senate leader Phil Berger (pictured above) sponsored the bill and said that he supported the legislation because it lets the state enforce the law while still allowing officials to follow by their religious beliefs.
“While the courts have taken steps to provide special rights to some, we must not ignore the constitutionally protected rights of others,” he said in a statement, according to Reuters.
Could we have a bill in my home state allowing officials to refuse to serve in any capacity anyone from the North Carolina legislature?
Enjoy your Section 1983 lawsuits.
I can’t wait to see the headlines the first time one of those government officials use the "“sincerely held religious objection” to refuse to perform marriages for something other than same-sex couples.
If the official objects to a couple getting married who don’t go to church, an inter-faith couple, an inter-racial couple, a couple where one is divorced, a couple that previous had out of wedlock children, a Muslim couple, a Jewish couple, a couple too old to bear children, a couple where one or both are disabled, etc.
There are, no doubt, plenty of people who could claim to have a "“sincerely held religious objection” to any of those marriages (and more). Do we really think the NC Senate wants those to create those exemptions as well? Or are they really just writing a broad law that is intended to sanction discriminatory actions by government officials against one particular group - gay people.
Could they refuse because sincerely believe that God forbids interracial marriages? Or GOP/DEM mixed marriages?
Of course. Amurikkka’s RWNJs are quickly lumping EVERYTHING under their sadistic, self-absorbed, selfish, politicized bastardization of Christianity precisely so they can try to use the First Amendment to exempt themselves from the 19th and 20th centuries.
I almost wish Pope Francis wasn’t such a consummate diplomat and would excoriate them for their nonsense.