Karen Ocamb has a rather interesting blog post that, if true, might be big (and welcome) news. The government just filed their latest brief in response to the Log Cabin DADT suit. Here is Log Cabin's lawyer explaining what is significant about the government's latest brief:
UPDATE: Dan Woods, lead attorney for the Log Cabin Republicans, just emailed this MAJOR UPDATE TO HIS EARLIER STATEMENT:
“The government’s brief is stunning for what it does not say. As we expected, it argues that Log Cabin Republicans lacked standing to bring the case and that Judge Phillips lacked authority to issue a world-wide injunction; Judge Phillips’s 85-page decision from October 2010 covered these points in great detail and we are confident that the government’s arguments on these points will be rejected. The government’s only other argument is that the recent repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell was constitutional but that was not an issue tried before Judge Phillips and was never part of the government’s case before. The government’s brief does not address the due process or first amendment issues on which Judge Phillips based her decision or the standard of review applicable to our challenge to the constitutionality of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. By not arguing merits of the constitutionality of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, the government’s brief, by its silence on these issues, is effectively conceding that Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell was and is unconstitutional. While it may be implicit, it is the first time in the six-plus-year history of the case that the government has not argued that Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell is constitutional. This is a major change in the government’s position.”
