Davis
(Photo
by
Ty
Wright/Getty)
Turns
out
Kim
Davis’s
15
minutes
of
fame
aren’t
over
yet.
You
probably
thought
the
Kentucky
clerk
who
refused
to
follow
the
law
and
wouldn’t
provide
same-sex
couples
with
marriage
licenses
in
the
wake
of
the
landmark
marriage
equality
case
Obergefell
v.
Hodges,
was,
like
skinny
jeans
and
side
parts,
a
sign
of
a
bygone
era.
But
now
that
flouting
the
law
until
it
bends
to
your
preferred
religious
proclivities
is
all
the
rage,
Davis
is
back.
Davis
is
appealing
an
order
directing
her
to
pay
a
same-sex
couple
$100,000
in
compensation
(plus
attorneys
fees)
for
denying
them
a
marriage
license.
In
the
appeal,
Davis
asks
the
Supreme
Court
to
overturn
the
Obergefell
case,
and
even
the
ask
is
deeply
concerning.
Because
if
you’ve
been
paying
attention, you
know
the
Supreme
Court is
gunning
for Obergefell.
And
it’s
not
just
the
doom-vibes
of
2025
that
has
me
predicting
yet
another
roll
back
of
rights.
There’s
plenty
of
written
evidence
that
demonstrated
a
majority
of
the
Court
is
ready
to
end
marriage
equality.
It
all
started
with
Samuel
Alito’s
unhinged
dissent
in
Obergefell,
and he
still
can’t
let
it
go.
In
2020,
in
a
denial
of
cert
in
another
case
involving
Davis,
Alito
and
Thomas
railed
against
Obergefell
and
its
“ruinous
consequences
for
religious
liberty.”
Then
there
was
Alito’s
*majority*
opinion
overturning
established
precedent
guaranteeing
the
right
to
reproductive
freedom
in Dobbs,
which creates
parallels between
the
right
established
in Obergefell and
reproductive
freedom,
as
they’re
not
“deeply
rooted
in
history.”
And,
of
course,
the concurrence
in
that
case
written
by
Clarence
Thomas
explicitly
says
the
Court
should
“reconsider”
its
jurisprudence
on
marriage
equality
(as
well
as
the
Court’s
holdings
on
consensual
sexual
contact
and
contraception,
so
there’s
more
horror
to
look
forward
to).
Of
course,
not
everyone
sees
the
downfall
of
marriage
equality
in
the
tea
leaves.
Axios
has
a
panel
of
experts,
like
Mary
Bonauto,
attorney
to Jim
Obergefell, who
are
more
optimistic.
Bonauto
said,
“There’s
good
reason
for
the
Supreme
Court
to
deny
review
in
this
case
rather
than
unsettle
something
so
positive
for
couples,
children,
families
and
the
larger
society
as
marriage
equality.”
Oh,
my
dear
sweet
summer
child.
No
matter
how
much
you
and
I
(and 69%
of
Americans) see
marriage
equality
as
a
societal
good,
Alito
very
much
sees
it
differently.
The
current
Court
is
disturbingly
down
with shredding
precedent and
issuing
decisions wildly
out
of
line with
what
the majority
of
Americans believe
as
long
as
it
fits *their*
vision of
what
the
country
should
be.
So,
yeah.
It’s
time
to
start
prepping
for
a
regression.
California
and
Hawaii
are
already
ensuring
zombie
laws
that
predate
Obergefell
don’t
come
back
from
the
dead.
And
estate
lawyers
are
available
to
protect
couples’
relationships
with
contracts.
Because
the
time
to
worry
is
now.
Kathryn
Rubino
is
a
Senior
Editor
at
Above
the
Law,
host
of
The
Jabot
podcast,
and
co-host
of
Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer.
AtL
tipsters
are
the
best,
so
please
connect
with
her.
Feel
free
to
email
her
with
any
tips,
questions,
or
comments
and
follow
her
on
Twitter
@Kathryn1 or
Mastodon
@[email protected].