Judge Phillips: Military Ban of Gays Unconstitutional

By Douglas V. Gibbs

A local federal judge (local to me here in Southern California, anyway), U.S. District Judge Virginia Phillips, has come to the decision that the ban of gays in the U.S. Military is unconstitutional. Therefore, the judge has granted a request for an injunction halting the federal government's "don't ask, don't tell" policy for gays in the military.

In the judge's opinion, the policy that does not allow openly gay individuals to serve in the military does not help military readiness. She also determined that banning homosexuals from the military has a "direct and deleterious effect" on the armed services.

One must ask, should an inferior court judge have the authority to issue a nationwide injunction?

Better yet, when one takes the judiciary into consideration, and the opinion that the federal courts are the arbiters of the U.S. Constitution - noting that the Founding Fathers wrote the Constitution with the aim to limit the powers of the federal government - can one really justify the reality that the federal government, through the federal courts, is deciding for itself its own authorities?

-- Political Pistachio Conservative News and Commentary

Judge: Military's ban on gays is unconstitutional - Forbes