Because by law her signature must be on each and every marriage license issued from her office. It is a signature of approval. She doesn't approve.
I get the feeling she originally decided not to issue due to religious objections, and her lawyer came up with that argument after the fact.
Her lawyer has never even attempted to make that argument. I don't know why. That is the first argument I would have made. If he had made that argument, then his client would likely not be in jail..... yet.
I agree. She could have made her primary argument that it violates her faith, which it does, but she could easily have argued that she was properly awaiting the action of the Ky Legislature to rewrite the Ky statute. If Rand Paul's idea or Matt Bevin's ideas are followed, then there will no longer be marriage as we know it now in Kentucky. That's probably a good thing.
But the homosexualist agenda is foremost, and those agitating to flaunt the receipt of a 'marriage license' somehow have the mantle of those denied equality. In reality, this lady is in jail, so it's her faith and her rights that clearly are being violated.
Paul/Bevin have separately come up with ideas that would protect any person, and that would satisfy Scotus' requirement of equal protection.