Former Solicitor General Ted Olson Advocating for Same-Sex Marriage
- Details
-
Published on Wednesday, 19 August 2009 23:28
Former U.S. Solicitor General Theodore Olson has been one of the most respected conservative legal minds in the country for many years. But many conservative legal scholars, including Judge Robert Bork, are "bewildered," according to the New York Times (click here for the NY Times story), that Mr. Olson now is leading the legal effort to overturn California's ban on same-sex marriage.
"I'd like to know why," the Times quotes Judge Bork, whom the paper calls a "close friend" of Mr. Olson, as saying.
Mr. Olson was honored by the Ave Maria School of Law in April, receiving the school's first National Medal of Excellence at a ceremony before about 400 people at an event in Naples sponsored by the law school. In his remarks to that gathering, Mr. Olson did not mention his position on same-sex marriage although he apparently at that time was considering taking a role in challenging the California law. (Click here for the Ave Herald story on Mr. Olson's appearance in Naples.)
The acting dean of the Ave Maria School of Law, Eugene Milhizer, said he was surprised by Mr. Olson's actions.
"Until just recently," Mr. Milhizer said, "Mr. Olson had been known to align himself with conservative legal efforts congruent with the teachings of the Catholic Church."
"Like most observers, we were surprised when Mr. Olson departed from his past positions on constitutional law and announced his work to overturn California's marriage law. We certainly were not aware of his position or his upcoming work with pro-gay marriage organizations when he was our guest earlier this year."
