What's the opposite of outrage filter?

March 24, 2011 9:22 AM

In what appears to be the first such action of its type, an Immigration Judge in Manhattan has adjourned deportation proceedings for the Argentine lesbian spouse of an American citizen to allow the couple to proceed with their application to have their marriage recognized for purposes of federal immigration law.

The DoJ's announcement that they will no longer defend DOMA in court has given bi-national same-sex couples new hope that they can fight deportation of non-citizen spouses.

posted by hippybear (23 comments total)

!
posted by kipmanley at 9:30 AM on March 24, 2011 [1 favorite]

Hooray, civility.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 9:31 AM on March 24, 2011 [5 favorites]

Excellent!
posted by zarq at 9:32 AM on March 24, 2011

Happy happy filter. :)
posted by kmz at 9:32 AM on March 24, 2011

This is a fantastic step in the right direction!
posted by Zophi at 9:32 AM on March 24, 2011

Yes we can! (Slow progress is better than no progress.)
posted by oddman at 9:33 AM on March 24, 2011 [1 favorite]

Astonished.
posted by rtha at 9:40 AM on March 24, 2011

and there was I thinking all American judges were insane ultra-right christians.
posted by Homemade Interossiter at 10:03 AM on March 24, 2011

Hooray!!
posted by Annabelle74 at 10:05 AM on March 24, 2011

and there was I thinking all American judges were insane ultra-right christians.

The insane ultra-right Christians only get to appoint judges when they're in power. This woman was appointed by Bill Clinton.
Sidenote: Both Clinton and Obama have been woefully slow at appointing judges, reducing their ability to lower the percentage of insane ultra-right Christians on the bench.
posted by dhartung at 10:10 AM on March 24, 2011 [1 favorite]

'Bout damn time.
posted by LordSludge at 10:11 AM on March 24, 2011

Yay. An enlightened man in a position of authority. Rare indeed.
posted by chance at 10:15 AM on March 24, 2011

Both Clinton and Obama have been woefully slow at appointing judges

I think you'll find that Senate Republicans have been using threat of filibuster and anonymous holds on judicial nomination approvals in order to obstruct his ability to have a fully staffed federal bench. He's been nominating people for not only judicial positions but also other appointed positions since the day he took office. The Senate refuses to act on any of them, leaving him with recess appointments as his only option for getting the positions filled. (And those appointments don't stick, due to the nature of the beast.)
posted by hippybear at 10:18 AM on March 24, 2011 [6 favorites]

So far, so good.
posted by Faint of Butt at 10:52 AM on March 24, 2011

I will be happier when DOMA is just off the books, but this is a good first step for immigrants who have same-sex spouses. It doesn't make their situation any worse.
posted by immlass at 11:18 AM on March 24, 2011

What's the opposite of outrage filter?

Outrage the Other Guy filter.

Honestly, can you not name five web sites that are, right now, as you read this, going completely fucking ballistic with spittle-flecked fury about this?
posted by Naberius at 1:24 PM on March 24, 2011

Wait a minute... good news for both immigrants and gay people? I'm afraid to look out the window right now because I fear that I'll see I'm not, in fact, in Colorado anymore but in a land of marshmallow bunnies and oral sex hugs and then wake back up in the real world, where news for both gay people and immigrants, and especially gay immigrants, is unrelentingly grim.
posted by Kattullus at 2:19 PM on March 24, 2011 [3 favorites]

Fantastic. One more nail in the coffin of the bullshit Defense of Marriage Act.
posted by exogenous at 3:13 PM on March 24, 2011

Yay!
posted by joannemerriam at 4:59 PM on March 24, 2011

High five.
posted by you're a kitty! at 5:09 PM on March 24, 2011

Aw, just looking at the photo of them makes me all sniffly. I love pictures of people in love. </big sappy moosh>
posted by Lexica at 7:10 PM on March 24, 2011

The insane ultra-right Christians only get to appoint judges when they're in power. This woman was appointed by Bill Clinton.
Sidenote: Both Clinton and Obama have been woefully slow at appointing judges, reducing their ability to lower the percentage of insane ultra-right Christians on the bench.

Federal district and appellate judges have to be confirmed by the senate, and there's a long-standing tradition that either senator from a nominee's home state can veto their appointment without explanation. Immigration judges are not like regular judges, but are technically civil servants who work for the DoJ. There are a number of other bodies like EOIR, OIL, and BIA which also influence immigration policy and wher change occurs slowly. The agencies (DHS, USCIS) are technically part of the executive, but Congress exerts considerably more influence over them than other agencies, albeit indirectly, because immigration policy is historically an exclusive power of Congress, and Republicans have had the whip hand on immigration policy over the last 15-20 years.

In short, good news, but don't break out the champagne yet.
posted by anigbrowl at 7:27 PM on March 24, 2011

U.S. Agency Confirms: Binational Same-Sex Immigration Cases on Hold Over DOMA Questions.
posted by ericb at 3:20 PM on March 29, 2011