Hidden Supreme Court hint on state law against interracial marriage

Gay rights attorneys are closely scrutinizing today’s Supreme Court ruling striking down the Defense of Marriage Act for clues on how the court might rule on future challenges to state laws barring gay marriage. And they think they’ve found a key tell that’s grounds for real optimism.

Buried in the decision is a reference to the Supreme Court’s decision in Loving v. Virginia, in which the Court struck down a state law against interracial marriage as unconstitutional. To gay advocates, the reference looks as if it could signal a readiness on the Court’s part to do the same to state laws banning gay marriage.

The reference to interracial marriage comes in a section where the majority opinion is discussing the validity of federal intervention in the traditional authority states have had over marriage. ... more here, from sharp-eyed Greg Sargent,WaPo