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CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
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WHEREAS, President Barack Obama took an oath to "preserve, |
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protect and defend the Constitution of the United States," but on |
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February 23, 2011, he instructed the U.S. Department of Justice to |
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stop defending the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage |
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Act; and |
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WHEREAS, The Defense of Marriage Act, or DOMA, was passed in |
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1996 with overwhelming majorities in both houses of Congress and |
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signed into law by then president Bill Clinton; DOMA consists of two |
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core provisions: it defines the words "marriage," "spouse," |
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"husband," and "wife" wherever they appear in the U.S. Code as |
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referring only to the union of a man and a woman, and it defends the |
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right of each state to reject the redefinition of marriage that has |
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occurred in a handful of other states as a result of state court |
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decisions or legislation; and |
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WHEREAS, Nearly 40 states have enacted laws defending the |
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institution of marriage, and 31 have embraced traditional marriage |
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in their constitutions; the Texas Defense of Marriage Act was |
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signed by the governor in 2003, and the statute was solidified with |
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a constitutional amendment defining marriage as a union between a |
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man and a woman, which was approved by voters in November 2005; and |
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WHEREAS, The constitutional role of the president of the |
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United States is to execute the laws, not adjudicate them; it is |
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well-established policy of the U.S. Department of Justice to defend |
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a federal statute unless no reasonable argument can be made in its |
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defense, but instead President Obama has unilaterally decided that |
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DOMA is unconstitutional; the constitutionality of this law should |
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be determined by the courts, not by the executive branch; now, |
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therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the 82nd Legislature of the State of Texas |
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hereby respectfully urge the president of the United States to |
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order the U.S. Department of Justice to defend the |
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constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act; and, be it |
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further |
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RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward an |
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official copy of this resolution to the president of the United |
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States. |