Posted on 02/24/2004 4:41:30 PM PST by calcowgirl
SACRAMENTO – Even as Attorney General Bill Lockyer prepared court papers Tuesday to stop same-sex marriages, a pair of conservative Republicans who helped organize last year's recall of former Gov. Gray Davis announced plans to remove Lockyer from office for "neglecting" state marriage laws.
U.S. Senate hopeful Howard Kaloogian and political consultant Ted Costa opened a petition drive to recall Lockyer, arguing that the two-term attorney general has been ignoring Proposition 22, a measure approved by voters in 2000 that requires the state to only recognize marriage between a man and a woman as valid.
Lockyer, a potential rival to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2006, has been criticized in the last week for not moving more aggressively to enforce Proposition 22 and stop San Francisco city officials from issuing thousands of same-sex marriage licenses since Feb. 12.
But Nathan Barankin, spokesman for Lockyer, said the attorney general has made his intentions well known in recent days. "The criticism of the attorney general is fueled by misinformation and falsehoods. It's been abundantly clear that Lockyer was going to defend state law."
Although Kaloogian and Costa gained a measure of prominence as promoters of the Davis recall last year, the campaign floundered until Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Vista, spent $1.7 million of his own money to gather the signatures needed to qualify the measure for the ballot.
Kaloogian, a former Assemblyman from San Diego, is now running a distant third in the GOP primary for the U.S. Senate seat held by Barbara Boxer.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's spokeswoman Margita Thompson said the governor thinks the attorney general should be given a chance to do his job.
"The governor is satisfied that the attorney general is moving expeditiously and should be given a chance to do his job," Thompson said.
Meanwhile, Lockyer drew criticism Tuesday from another candidate on the same issue. Former Attorney General Dan Lungren – running for a Sacramento-area U.S. House seat, said he would not have hesitated to get a court order to stop the San Francisco marriages.
"I would have gone directly to court and put the full weight of the state to stop this," he said. "Bill Lockyer needs to step up to the plate and defend the law. We need to have an attorney general who isn't fighting with one or two hands tied behind his back."
Lungren, who served 10 years in Congress and two terms as attorney general from 1990 to 1998, is running the GOP nomination for the 3rd District seat being given up by Rep. Doug Ose. State Sen. Rico Oller, R-San Andreas, and Sacramento businesswoman and Ose' sister, Mary Ose, are also running.
The issue has taken on new political significance with just a week to go before the March 2 primary.On Monday, U.S. Senate candidate Howard Kaloogian's campaign spokesman said the GOP conservative was thinking about joining forces with Ted Costa, an early leader of the recall movement that ousted former Gov. Gray Davis last fall, to launch a recall of Lockyer. As of late Monday, Kaloogian spokesman Bob Taylor said no final decision had been made on a recall effort.
One of the plaintiffs suing the city was planning to hold a press conference on Tuesday with Republican congressional candidate and former California Attorney General Dan Lungren to urge Lockyer to act.
And conservative Assemblyman Ray Haynes, R-Temecula, was expected to hold a press conference to call for a voter initiative to change the state constitution to explicitly ban same-sex marriage.
God speed, Mr. Lockyer. May your journey be truly blessed,
It's good to hear one brave American in the land of Sodom is standing up for the rule of law. What an honorable guy!
Maybe its a close-knit group, I dunno.
Pete Wilson is the one who appointed James Warren. Thanks Pete! (NOT)
The Democrat-dominated legislature will not impeach a judge for doing what they want.
Yeah, right. You hate Arnold so much that, even though he was on the "right side" of the issue involved in this thread, you still somehow try to bash him. It's really getting old.
Oh, and "ROTFLMAO."
If one can speak of Judaism's essence, it is contained in the Torah statement, “I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse, and you shall choose life.” Judaism affirms whatever enhances life, and it opposes or separates whatever represents death.
Judaism’s Sexual Revolution: Why Judaism (and then Christianity) Rejected Homosexuality
Even as Attorney General Bill Lockyer prepared court papers Tuesday to stop same-sex marriages.
Notice has casually and nonchalantly this false premise was established.
Governor shies from Bush constitutional amendment plan
Arnie is busy putting his his finger in the air.
He now says, he can't REMEMBER if he voted for Proposition 22!
.
My understanding is that he will ask the Ca Supreme Court if Proposition 22 violates the constitution. After reading so many conflicting newspaper accounts, I don't even know if THAT is accurate. Thanks for pointing out one more misleading statement.
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