US: To ask outlawing of Prop 8

The Obama administration will ask the U.S. Supreme Court to strike down California's ban on same-sex marriage, an official told the Los Angeles Times. The administration faced a Thursday deadline for filing the friend-of-the-court brief. The Times said an administration official confirmed the Justice Department will file a brief in the case Thursday, the deadline for filing such briefs. Officials would not discuss the legal arguments. The impending brief was first reported by NBC. California voters approved Proposition 8, the California Marriage Protection Act, in 2008 with slightly more than 52 percent for, nearly 48 percent against. Prop 8 says in part, "Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California." A federal judge declared Prop 8 unconstitutional and a three-judge appeals court panel in San Francisco agreed 2-1. Argument in the U.S. Supreme Court in Hollingworth vs. Perry is scheduled for March 26. California Gov. Jerry Brown, when he was state attorney general, refused to defend Prop 8. ProtectMarriage -- its sponsor is a state non-profit, California Renewal -- is the official proponent of the proposition and has been allowed to defend it in the Supreme Court. Earlier this week, the California state attorney general's office filed a brief urging the high court to strike down the ban.