Liberty Counsel Joins DOMA Fight

The Liberty Counsel filed a brief in the appeal of Commonwealth of Massachusetts v. United States Department of Health and Human Services, in which the Defense of Marriage Act was ruled unconstitutional.

The antigay group released a statement Friday that detailed its support for DOMA, the 1996 law that defined marriage as a union between a man and a woman for federal purposes and allowed states to not recognize same-sex marriages performed in other jurisdictions. DOMA was ruled unconstitutional in a federal court by Judge Joseph Tauro last July. The Department of Justice is currently appealing that decision.

In its brief, Liberty brought up arguments related to child-rearing, using the arguments of a sociologist who believes a mother and father, within a family unit, are most qualified to raise children.

"While mothers provide an important flexibility and sympathy in their discipline, fathers provide ultimate predictability and consistency," the group claimed in its brief. "Both dimensions are critical for an efficient, balanced, and human child-rearing regime."