Thanks, Alan, for the reformulation. I prefer something like this, instead:
“Pursuant to Kentucky law, the county clerk’s authority will not be exercised
in a way that forces him or her to act contrary to his or her religious beliefs
as long as this does not violate the rights of others. All lic
Kevin:
Here is your version:
“Pursuant to Kentucky law, the county clerk’s authority will not be
exercised in a way that forces him or her to act contrary to his or her
religious beliefs as long as this does not violate the rights of others.
All licenses and other documents requiring the county cl
I think I see one source of our disagreement more clearly now, Kevin. You
suggest that the term "this office" has two meanings, the individual holding
the office and the physical location of the office. I think, however, there is
a third meaning. The term "office" refers to the government power
Alan,
That's a helpful clarification. You're right about this third meaning of
"office." (And there may be more!)
I find it helpful to think in terms of partial recusal: Davis is declining to
exercise marriage licensing authority, rather than exercising it to comport
with her religious beliefs
Kevin,
Under your proposed accommodation (leave aside the court order for now), who
would issue marriage licenses in Rowan County? In your earlier post below, you
write "the licenses are to be authorized by a human being holding a particular
office (namely, by one of the 120 people holding
The judge who recuses does not try to prevent his whole court from deciding the
death penalty case. He recuses himself, personally; he does not recuse the
government authority.
Davis did not seek merely to recuse herself; she sought to prevent her whole
office from issuing marriage licenses. An
In an order today the Sixth Circuit rejected Kim Davis's state RFRA claim
which, realistically, was the only one in play. "We need not address the
merits of her claims under Kentucky law because the Eleventh Amendment of
the U.S. Constitution precludes the federal courts from compelling state
offi
