(Source: MIRS.news, Published 12/2/2024) Elected Democrats who wouldn't be legally married without the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges took great issue with Rep. Josh Schriver (R-Oxford)'s tweet that calls to make "gay marriage illegal again." 

On X, Schriver said "this is not remotely controversial, nor extreme." In four hours, the post had over half a million views and almost five thousand likes. 

"Someone didn't get invited to the wedding," responded Austin Marsman, Democratic opponent of Rep. Matt Hall (R-Richland Township) in November. 

Attorney General Dana Nessel's response had over a thousand likes in two hours of it being posted.  

"Please explain how dissolving my marriage, or that of the hundreds of thousands of other same-sex couples living in America, provides a benefit to your constituents or anyone else. You're not interested in helping Michiganders. You want only to hurt those you hate. Shame on you," Nessel said. 

Michigan has a dormant Constitutional amendment banning gay marriage, and a statutory ban that is unenforceable due to the Obergefell v. Hodges decision by the U.S. Supreme Court. 

Back in November, Sen. Jeremy Moss (D-Southfield) made a thread of posts explaining how he sees a legal possibility that gay marriage could be illegal in Michigan once again. He explains that in order to remove the gay marriage ban from the state Constitution, it would take a ballot initiative (like how Michigan's abortion ban was repealed after Roe v. Wade was overturned), either by collecting petitions or receiving yea votes from two-thirds of each legislative chamber to put the question on the ballot. 

"Marriage equality prevailed in Michigan due to Obergefell and only due to Obergefell," Moss said that day.  

While the 2022 Respect for Marriage Act signed by President Joe Biden would protect existing marriages, no new licenses could be issued if Obergefell v. Hodges is overturned, Moss explained.  

The issue is further complicated by the extension of the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act (ELCRA) to include LGBTQ+ individuals.  

Moss said he'd like to hear other elected Republicans' stances on gay marriage.  

Rep. Jason Morgan (D-Ann Arbor) said he views this – and the instance in which a testifier of a Senate committee used the N-word slur last month – as examples of former President Donald TRUMP's election emboldening and empowering "extreme Republicans."  

In his social media post, Morgan said he knows and appreciates that not all Republicans agree with Schriver's belief.  

"I said this in August when Meshawn Maddock came at me with a gay slur. It was true when someone used a racial slur in a Senate hearing last week. And it was true today. It's in a similar spirit, albeit thankfully without a hateful slur, that we see Rep. Schriver feeling confident sharing that he believes the government should take away my right to be married," Morgan said.