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The 84-year-old plaintiff in the defense of marriage act case. joining me is the distinguished fellow and michael waldman, host of up with steve kornacki and maggie hab berman and also joining us from outside the supreme court is nbc justice correspondent pete williams. the great pete williams. how are you, pete? >> good day. >> pete, can you explain to us, those who don't understand, the technical ruling in prop 8. we get that doma was struck down meaning that the federal government will recognize marriages in those 12 states but explain the prop 8 ruling. >> reporter: let's not blow past t...

Contributing editor u.s. news and world report, syndicated columnist, charles krauthammer. steve, these are two big wins for gay rights advocates tonight. >> there's no question. the doma ruling in particular is the bigger of two wins, in part because of the way justice kennedy laid out his argument, which seems to set up further court battles in the future in which proponents of gay marriage will basically say this is unconstitutional because we think the states cannot ban gay marriage any longer. you saw from justice scalia -- i thought justice kennedy's reasoning, it felt as you read his op...

We're talking would this be the 50 state solution? it isn't really. this goes back to california. talking about prop 8, it goes back to california. you can have gay marriage in california. the next question is if you look at doma, okay, if you have gay marriage in california or in new york, one of the other states that allows it, the federal government has to recognize it. you still have an issue where if you're a citizen of new york and you want to move to florida and retire, lots of people in new york want to do that, florida does not have to recognize your marriage. >> right. >> i am struck...

Glorious way to do it, and she would be so pleased. thank you all. >> what was your first reaction when you heard the case -- when you heard the decision? what was your very first reaction? >> i cried. i cried. thrilled, obviously. but, yeah, the immediate residential reaction was just tears. >> if thea were here -- >> that was edith windsor, a gay woman who started the case. to recap the case, today in a landmark ruling for gay rights the supreme court in a 5-4 decision struck down the federal defense of marriage act finding it violated the equal protection clause of the constitution. the cou...

Defense of marriage act and then prop 8 just five years ago and today. does it feel swift to you? >> it feels at once switch, almost disorientingly so, but also like it's taken a lifetime. we're all a little, i think, shocked and teary as edie windsor rightfully so was today. i was today listening to the verdict for couples who lived and died under the discrimination that so many same-sex couples have been subjected to. historically this decision and this justice comes too late. for couples who live in the 37 states that do not have marriage ee quality, for couples in mississippi, alabama, ill...