Schwarzenegger rejects gay marriage licenses

The "Governator" has put his foot down on gay marriage. Despite San Francisco's move toward legalizing marriages for homosexual couples, Governor Schwarzenegger announced Friday that the licenses the city has issued are illegal.

According to Dennis Herrera, the city attorney, San Francisco sued the state on Thursday, defying state law that defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman.

In the week prior, Mayor Gavin Newsom gave the go-ahead for the city to issue marriage licenses to over 3,000 same-sex couples.

Herrera holds that Mayor Newsom's actions were prudent.

"Mayor Newsom took a bold step last week and we fully agree with him that his position is justified," he said.

The governor has publicly rebuffed the city's effort.

The statement posted on Schwarzenegger's website holds that, "The marriage certificates submitted to the Department of Health Services by the city and county of San Francisco fail to meet legal standards."

The statement also asserted that the people of California passed Proposition 22 - the marriage law - and the state will preserve it.

"The attorney general has assured me that he will vigorously defend the constitutionality of the law in the case brought against the state by San Francisco," Schwarzenegger continued.Ready to counter the state's word, Herrera noted that the county and city will argue breach of the state constitution's equal protection and due process clauses.

The opposing sides gathered in a hearing held Friday at 11 a.m. PST.

The hearing was a continuation from Tuesday. Judge Ronald Quidachay considered the suit filed by the the Campaign for California Families and the Alliance Defense Fund, which is suing on the basis that the same-sex marriage licenses violate state law.

City and state officials will have to wait until March 29th on a separate suit, filed by the Proposition 22 Legal Defense and Education Fund. The city was granted time to prove Newsom's endeavor is permissible.

Herrera predicts an extensive period of disagreement, not only on a local level, but also nationally. "I would anticipate that this case is going to have a long life," he said.