Mike Enzi: “when the Supreme Court in Massachusetts issued its ruling on marriage it did what no court ought to do. It set itself…”

“when the Supreme Court in Massachusetts issued its ruling on marriage it did what no court ought to do. It set itself apart from and above the State and Federal legislatures, and went so far as to order the Massachusetts Legislature to produce a remedy in a time period it knew was unworkable and unfair. Even if the legislature is able to draft a change in the law that is acceptable to the court it will be impossible to bring the issue before the voters to obtain their consent and approval of the legislature's intrusion on the important tradition of marriage. Regardless of what we may believe about the institution of marriage, the process of amending the Constitution, or the rights of same-sex couples to marry, there is no question that this is not what the Founding Fathers intended when they originally drafted the Constitution and established the principles of separation of powers and the right of the governed to have a voice in the laws that are written to govern them. The amendment we have before us is an attempt to remedy that situation and provide guidance and direction from the people of the States to the courts on this matter. As we begin our consideration of this issue, we cannot help but frame the argument in terms of our own experience of marriage and our memories of the marriage of our own mother and father.”