Page 24 - Proposition 8 News Today

I suppose you can force the child to say, this is my friend. but it changes the definition of what it means to be a friend. thats it seems to me what the quarters of proposition 8 are saying. all youre interested in is the label and you insist on the definition of the label. >> your analysis of that comment? >> i thought that was a fascinating comment. absolutely right. supporters. marriage equality are saying, gay people are entitled to the same respect and dignity as straight people when it co...

Could the supreme court be having second thoughts of taking up the lightning rod issue? today protesters and gay rights supporters swarming the steps of the supreme court and inside the justices were listening to the arguments. bullet point by bullet point. for and against. californias ban on same-sex marriage. thats the so-called proposition 8. the justices have the power to make gay marriage the law of the land. currently, its actually only the law in nine states and washington, d.c. if you go...

Recognize gay friends and family. 57% of people now say they have a family member or close friend who is gay. 12 percentage points higher than in 2007. tomorrow, though, the only survey that really counts, will have a sample size of nine. nine supreme court justices and perhaps only one pivotal voice when the decisions are read most likely in june. lets talk about it with senior legal analyst jeffrey toobin and californias attorney general, kamela harris. tomorrow, the justices will be dealing w...

Withhold them from the other. thats the issue and on the other side, the defenders of proposition 8 will be saying look, the voters spoke on this issue, this is a political question, the court should stay out of it. if gay people want the right to vote, they should organize and do it through the political system, not through judges. >> attorney general harris, supporters in your state, california, of the ban there say that the issue is evolving in the public domain, the supreme court shouldnt st...

And were just in love with them and were so humbled by the fact that we get to speak for them in the united states supreme court. did you want to go first? >> im chris perry, plaintiff in the case just heard at the supreme court. in this country, as children, we learn that there is a founding principle that all men and women are created equal. and we want this equality because this is a founding principle. unfortunately with the passage of proposition 8, we learned that there are a group of peop...

More americans polled say they know someone who is gay. shannon travis is at the supreme court. shannon, the justices examining the constitutionality of prop 8. what is each side arguing? >> reporter: yeah, obviously, theyll be laying out their arguments in a short time here at the supreme court, christine. obviously, this is proposition 8, the 2008 passed measure, voter-passed measure that banned same-sex marriage in california. on the pro side, the people that are actually in favor of the prop...

What the court has established 14 times since the 1800s, marriage is a fundamental right. i would suggest to you that unlike some other issues that may still remain controversial in this country, same sex marriage is a different -- is of a different nature. we have the president of the united states weighing in on this. we have over 100 republican leaders weighing in on this in favor of same sex marriage. the majority of americans, the majority of californians, if i can speak for california, the...

Report, murder abroad, the amanda knox story. thats at 10:00 p.m. eastern right here on cnn. >> were also following what will become a historic case for the u.s. supreme court. a few hours from now justices begin hearing arguments on the issue of same-sex marriage. the arguments will stretch over two days, and include both prop 8, californias ban on gay marriage, and the defense of marriage act. some people have camped out for the better part of a week. they are vying for 250 seats available to ...

Weighing any of that? public opinion? >> well, you know what, this came up several times in the argument. i thought it was interesting how it was spun. it was actually the opponents of same-sex marriage who mentioned the changes more than the supporters. the opponents, charles cooper, the lawyer who was saying proposition 8 should stand was saying, look, this is a subject of intense political debate in the country. some states are changing. some states are not changing. you, the justices, you sh...

Court will uphold proposition 8 in california, which is being argued today and uphold the federal defense of marriage act which will be argued tomorrow. we feel that both the people of california in the case of california law and congress in the case of doma made the right decision and the supreme court should not overturn either one of those laws. >> peter, darlene, thank you so much for joining us this morning. we appreciate it. >> thank you. maybe youre like many americans who depend on get...