There really is no good reason for the Clerk of the Court or the County Recorder to be elected positions. They should be appointed and subject to firing if they do not do their jobs.

Maybe people should just move out of such a backward state. I sure would. How can they keep a public employee when they are in jail. Crazy place

First, the Progressives invalidated individual achievement by giving out awards to everyone simply for being present; then they invalidated heroism by calling the victims heroes and spreading out heroism over many who did not deserve it; then they invalidated individual entrepreneurship by saying that "you didn't build this"; now they are invalidating a nuclear family by destroying the marriage by spreading it out among anything that walks. It is hard not to see the association with Orwell's 1984: 2 + 2 is not 4; it is whatever the Party wants it to be.

She was elected...needs a different process to remove. Elected officials can not just be :Fired" or we would have a new Congress every 2 weeks.

She chose to take a stand against a government whim she disagreed with and was willing to take the consequences. Remember Ghandi, M L King? same peaceful resistance.

So this federal judge has just invalidated the entire Nuremberg trials. And has reaffirmed the old adage that the victors set the rules.

term2 As I understand it, the clerk is elected. An elected official can not be "fired" but has to be inpeached to be removed. That's why the current emperor is still in America's White House.

Justice Roberts should be the one in jail for imposing his personal beliefs on the Country instead of following the Constitution. Liberal judges are the real problem.

How about just firing her and getting another minion who will do what their law says?

Gave you a +1; but the trouble is, there is a fee involved.

I am told there are states that have automated marriage licenses in this fashion.

There hasn't been an administration that did so since the 18th century.

If you care to send Kim a card like I did Friday--
Ms. Kim Davis
Carter County Detention Center
13 Crossbar Rd.
Grayson, KY, 41143

We do not elect officials to be robots, but on the basis of their convictions. If her job consists merely of operating a rubber stamp, it would be more sensible to replace her with a machine which would inherently follow orders and not worry about implications, consequences or mere local citizens.

If this issue didn't come up before she was elected, it should have, but at this point she's the elected clerk and, short of a recall or judicial tyranny, will remain so until the next clerk is elected.

Actually....THIS is the real solution:

Get government out of marriage altogether. It is a civil contract, marriage licenses are three-party contracts with the state. Government can, and should via the Constitution, be involved in disputes within that contract as an arbiter. Other than that, it should be a contract between two consenting individuals. That would fix everything.

When urges put themselves above the laws of God, they can no longer effectively judge!

That's why I prefer the term, "natural rights". You may believe in whatever you wish, fallacy or not, and you still have your natural rights.

Animals and minors cannot enter into contracts. Stop being obtuse.

I would agree with you IF the administration in power now obeyed the laws and the Constitution. They do not!

The judge doesn't have the power to change forms, alter the laws regarding what agency handles marriage licenses, etc, thus he doesnt have those options as presented.

As it stands now, she is required by law to issue the marriage licenses suing the firms and processes lain out. Either she does it, or the court orders her to, or the court finds some way in which she isn't legally obligated to do her job.

As the third option isn't actually available (or desireable!) ordering her to do her job is the only option the judge has available. Fines and jail time are the only recourse for contempt of court and as noted in the article fines would be entirely ineffective.

In KY she can't be fired; she must be impeached by the legislature.

Here's the real solution...

If you have a job that doesn't fall in with your religious belief structure, then get another job where there is no such conflict. You have that freedom, and doing so doesn't infrnge on the rights of others.

It also goes to the "render unto Ceasar what is Caesar's" - if you're talking Religious Marriage, then that is indeded the purveyance of your religion and of your faith, but when you're talking Civil Marriage, then that is within the purveyance not of the church, but of the judges who perform marriages not of a religious nature.

While I appreciate her personal convictions and her freedom of religion, others who exercising THEIR freedom of religion or their personal convictions are being denied their rights - in essence, rights only belong to those who believe exactly as she does... much like in England where in the 18th century rights belonged only to those who believed as the King did.

All she has to do is resign because her religious views do not mesh with state law. She will be sticking by her beliefs, problem solved.

What happened to the good old days when failing to do as your boss asked precipitated firing (as opposed to incarceration)? "A dangerous precedent"...

The best solution is to get government out of marriage entirely and eliminate all tax-favored status, credits, etc...

That being said, if I were the Rowan County Clerk, I would tell the court she is ready to comply with the court's demands. After getting out of jail, create a sign at the county clerk's office, saying that the court's new definition of marriage is now in force and the following relationships will now receive "licenses" at the office:

1) Man/woman
2) Man/man
3) Woman/woman
4) 1 Woman / 2 or more men
5) 1 Man / 2 or more women
6) 2 or more men / 2 or more women
7) Man/cousin
8) Woman/cousin
9) Man/mother
10) Woman/father
11) Man/granny
12) Woman/grandpa
13) Man/sister
14) Man/computer
15) Woman/smartphone
16) Man/game console
17) Woman/horse
18) Woman/dog
19) Man/dog
20) Man/goat
21) Woman/cat

Per the court's new, wider definition of marriage, the only requirements for a marriage license in Rowan County are:

1) At least 1 adult human 18 years old or older
2) At least 1 legal resident of Rowan County
3) Non-humans can be of any age
4) All humans must express their love for each other
5) Non-humans are not required to express love

That's for that clear explanation.