Judge Poses Tough Questions As Gay Marriage Case Starts

SAN FRANCISCO -The judge presiding over the federal gay marriage case has a lot of questions for both sides, and he began posing them during opening statements.

The trial began Monday with Theodore Olson, who represents the same-sex couples suing to overturn Proposition 8, the gay marriage ban approved by voters in 2008.

Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn R. Walker peppered Olson with questions about how the ban is discriminatory if California allows domestic partnerships.

Olson drew comparisons to some state laws banning interracial marriage in the 1960s that would have banned President Barack Obama’s parents from getting married.

Charles Cooper, a lawyer for the ban’s sponsors, said in his opening statement that it’s too difficult to know the impact of gay marriage on traditional marriage because it’s still so new. He urged the court to take a wait-and-see approach.