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Same-sex couple Nowlin Haltom (L) and Michael McKeon (R) joined other same-sex couples who requested and were rejected for marriage licenses as part of a national "Request Marriage" action and call for the repeal of Proposition 8 and the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).

In a sweeping policy shift today, the Obama administration announced its decision to discontinue enforcement of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act, which heretofore invalidated same-sex marriage at the federal level. Speaking on behalf of the administration, Attorney General Eric Holder called DOMA unconstitutional; citing that “classifications based on sexual orientation” merited the use of “heightened scrutiny” of same-sex couples. How will this affect court rulings about California’s Proposition 8?

Guest:

David B. Cruz, Professor of Law at USC