Pennsylvania’s GOP Governor Has Black Friends, and He Has the Photoshopped Images to Prove it

If you were suspicious of the GOP’s outreach strategy towards minorities, this latest episode in conservative dissonance will raise your other eyebrow.

A photo on Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett’s campaign website has been made a laughing ‘stock’ – because of a stock images that were photoshopped in, giving the impression that Corbett has a diverse base of supporters.

Of course, the Internet is having a field day.

Speaking to BuzzFeed, Corbett’s campaign admitted that the “whole website footer graphic is a work of Photoshop.”

They went on to clarify that “the graphic has both stock photos and actual photos in it.”

But BuzzFeed did a particularly good job in showing how blatant the mocked up photo is:

Here’s the picture in question that appears at the bottom of Corbett’s campaign website.

Emails Reveal School Lied About Canceling School Musical For 'Homosexual Themes' - VIDEO

Emails procured through Pennsylvania’s “Right To Know” law confirm that South Williamsport Jr/Sr High School cancelled a production of Monty Python’s Spamalot because it included a same-sex wedding, reports Think Progress.

The uncovered emails show that despite the school’s attempt to claim otherwise, the only justification for the cancellation given by Principal Jesse Smith was the play’s “homosexual themes.”

Records also prove that contrary to claims made by school district Superintendent Mark Stamm that the musical had not actually been canceled because it was only “under consideration,” Principal Smith had already signed a check for nearly $2,000 to order the licensing rights for the play last May.

In emails sent last June, Smith said that he was concerned about “a gay wedding being performed.” Musical director Dawn Burch replied, “I am fully aware of their place in the script and am not certain what offense they create,” noting that marriage equality had recently arrived in Pennsylvania.

Smith then explained that he was “not comfortable with Spamalot and its homosexual themes” because “this type of material [would make] it very hard” for families to attend. He added that he did not “want students to have to choose between their own personal beliefs and whether or not to take part in a production.”

When Burch wrote to Stamm that she found it “extremely disappointing that homosexuality would be the basis of not approving a show,” noting that “this is how we raise children to be haters,” the superintendent replied that he was familiar with Smith’s objections and stood by them.

Last year, a high school in Ottumwa, Iowa said that students could not perform The Laramie Project, Moisés Kaufman's play about the hate crime murder of gay Wyoming teen Matthew Shepard, because it is "too adult."

Federal Judge Blocks 'Contrived' Attempt by County Clerk to Defend Pennsylvania's Gay Marriage Ban

Theresa Santai-Gaffney, the Schuylkill County Register of Wills, wanted to intervene and defend Pennsylvania's gay marriage ban after Governor Tom Corbett said he would not following a federal judge's ruling last month.

That judge rejected her request today, Bloomberg reports:

The “deep personal disagreement” with the ruling of Theresa Santai-Gaffney, the Schuylkill County issuer of marriage licenses, doesn’t make her a stand-in for the state, Jones said today. He rejected her request to intervene on its behalf. 

“If the highest elected official in the commonwealth chooses to abide by our decision, it defies credulity that we would permit a single citizen to stand in for him to perfect an appeal,” Jones wrote. 

Santai-Gaffney, the county register of wills, argued that the decision made the state of marriage law and the scope of her duties unclear. 

``Nothing could be further from the truth,'' Jones wrote, saying the decision was clarified in a notice issued by the state Department of Health to clerks that handle marriage licenses.

Said Jones: "There is nothing remotely ambiguous about how Santai-Gaffney must perform her duties relative to issuing marriage licenses. At bottom, we have before us a contrived legal argument by a private citizen who seeks to accomplish what the chief executive of the commonwealth, in his wisdom, has declined to do."

Cop Celebrates Pittsburgh Pride By Punching Lady

Here’s a disturbing video of a lady lurching around as a police officer punches her at Pittsburgh Pride.

It’s hard to tell from the video what’s going on. Presumably the cop didn’t just walk up to a random person and assault them for no reason.

According to police, the woman was fighting with another guy, and about 50 people had gathered around them. The officer reported that when he tried to break up the fight, the woman punched him.

And allegedly, that wasn’t the officer’s first run-in with that woman. Earlier in the day, he says, he had to warn her “not to be so physically offensive” with other people.

So it’s kind of hard to say who’s in the wrong here. Was this woman picking fights with people and assaulting a cop who tried to calm things down? Or is this a cop who was looking for an opportunity to hit a woman in the chest?

Either way, it probably could have been worse. In Detroit, a guy at Pride was beaten up by a group of men shouting homophobic slurs.

Despicable Teabagger Tom Corbett Blames Teachers for HIS Deadly Budget Cuts!

Governor Tom Corbett (R-PA) has declined to accept any responsibility in the tragic death of another child in a criminally underfunded Pennsylvania public school. Last Wednesday, a 7-year-old first grader lost consciousness in a hallway at Andrew Jackson Elementary and died a short time later at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. The exact cause of death is still unknown. In what has become a common practice in Pennsylvania, the school has lost its full-time nurse and must make do with one only six days per month. Although there was a volunteer present that happened to be a registered nurse, efforts to revive the child using CPR were unsuccessful. Principal Lisa Ciarianca-Kaplan said that her staff did everything right, and that having a full-time nurse would not have made a difference in this case, although district officials claim that this remains to be seen.

Last September,Laporshia Massey, 12, died after suffering an apparent asthma attack at Bryant Elementary in West Philadelphia, another school that was forced to forego a full-time nurse because of Corbett’s Draconian budget cuts. Philadelphia schools are currently operating with a $216 million funding gap as a result of Corbett refusing to adequately fund the state’s public schools. His budgets have cut more than $1 billion from education, resulting in the loss of over 20,000 public school positions. What makes these cuts even more intolerable, is Corbett’s complete refusal to impose a severance tax on Marcellus Shale drilling like almost every other gas-rich state, losing potentially hundreds of millions of dollars that could be going into public education. While this sweetheart deal is insulting and enraging, it is somewhat more understandable when considering that the industry contributed well over a million dollars to Corbett’s campaign war chest.

A Pennsylvania public school teacher, Steven Singer, has had enough:

“The deaths of these two students are direct consequences of Corbett’s education policies! He slashed education funding by close to $1 billion every year for the last 3 years! This resulted in 20,000 teachers being laid off, class sizes skyrocketing, the elimination of art, music and extra curricular activities – and, yes, school nurses! If this is not the time to address the issue of his malfeasance, when is!? Once people have time to forget? He did nothing after the first student died. Hadn’t the time come yet to address that issue before the second one died!? Will there be time to address the issue before another child dies? Would rushing to judgement after three years be too uncouth!?”

He decided to write Gov. Corbett a letter asking him to fulfill his constitutional duty and fund the public schools adequately. He didn’t really expect a response at all, let alone one that puts all of the blame on the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers. Here is Corbett’s disgusting response:

“Putting the safety and educational needs of our students first must continue to be our top priority. There is an appropriate time and place to call for education policy discussions. Right now, our thoughts should be with the child’s family, friends, school and community who have all been through an extremely traumatic situation.

I am deeply troubled that the union leadership of the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers – and by extension the American Federation of Teachers – would use the recent tragedy at Jackson Elementary as an opportunity to make a political statement. For more than a year, we all have asked the union leadership – who are disconnected from the great teachers in Philadelphia who are in the classroom every day – to come to the table and engage in meaningful negotiations to assist in the financial recovery of the Philadelphia School District. 

The Commonwealth, the School District, the School Reform Commission and City Council are all working to contribute to the success of Philadelphia’s schools and students. I will continue to ask the union leadership to put the children of Philadelphia first and engage in a meaningful dialogue and a shared vision for the future of the children of Philadelphia.

Tom Corbett”

NOM's Brian Brown Says Group is Thinking About Intervening in Pennsylvania Gay Marriage Case

Brian Brown cries in the gallery in July '11 as NY legislature passes marriage equality.

Following Governor Tom Corbett's decision yesterday to let stand the ruling striking down the state's ban on gay marriage, the National Organization for Marriage (NOM) is considering intervening in the case, says NOM President Brian Brown in a new blog post.

NOM recently tried to intervene in the Oregon case, but was denied.

Writes NOM:

Brown said that the National Organization for Marriage is itself evaluating whether it could intervene in this case on behalf of its Pennsylvania members. It is also looking into what other options might exist to work with people or groups in the state who have standing to mount the strong defense of marriage called for in this case.

Brown said the case is winnable, pointing for support to the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to issue a stay in a decision overturning Utah's marriage amendment, as well as to the recent Affirmative Action ruling in Michigan. In the Michigan case, the Supreme Court indicated that social policy decisions, even divisive ones, can be reasonably adjudicated by the people of a state.

"The fact is that if Governor Corbett stood by the principles he claims, he'd have chosen to defend marriage to the very end," Brown added. "The Supreme Court has indicated that they believe marriage should be left to the states and it is within states' rights to decide the matter. The Court very recently indicated as well a favorable view of the democratic role of the popular referendum process. In short, the challenge that the Governor is running away from today is one he most certainly could have won. So someone must step in and work to win."

Santorum Not Speaking About Pennsylvania's Gay Marriages or the Judge He Backed That Made Them Happen

In 2002, Rick "Frothy Mix" Santorum recommended John Edward Jones III for U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, saying he “understands our values and traditions.” Jones was then appointed by then-president George W. Bush. So it comes as a great surprise that a Republican, Bush-appointed, Santorum-backed judge would be the one to strike down Pennsylvania's gay marriage ban.

Even better, Pennsylvania Governor Corbett said that he would not challenge Jones' ruling, saying in part,

Throughout the debate on this important and meaningful issue, I have maintained that Commonwealth officials and agencies would follow the provisions of Pennsylvania’s marriage law unless or until a court says otherwise. The court has spoken, and I will ensure that my administration follows the provisions of Judge Jones’ order with respect for all parties.

The irony is so deliciously sweet it'll rot your teeth.

For his own part, Santorum has been quiet on the issue, and on gay issues in general of late. ThinkProgress points out that Santorum never addressed the striking down of the marriage ban on his Twitter account, nor when he appeared on Fox News just minutes after. He has also not responded to several media outlets who called to inquire.

It's too much to hope that Santorum has changed his opinions on gays at all, but perhaps he's finally realizing that campaigning against equality is a losing issue, particularly for the younger voters that the Republicans are hoping to attract, and will instead focus his time and efforts on more productive efforts such as increasing the federal minimum wage.

Corbett gives up the marriage-equality fight in Pa.

After a federal court struck down Pennsylvania’s ban on same-sex marriage this week, it was widely assumed that Gov. Tom Corbett (R), a fierce opponent of equal marriage rights, would appeal the ruling, leaving some ambiguity as to the future of state law.

 

Wednesday, however, the Republican governor decided to simply walk away from the fight.

Gov. Corbett on Wednesday announced he would not appeal the federal court ruling that struck down the state’s ban on same-sex marriages.

 

In a statement, the governor repeated his personal opposition to same-sex marriage but said his administration lawyers had concluded that an appeal of Tuesday’s historic decision was “extremely unlikely” to succeed.

To be sure, the governor’s statement made clear that he still doesn’t believe same-sex couples should be able to get legally married, but Corbett no longer sees the value in keeping the fight alive.

 

Let Freedom Ring!

Pennsylvania Auditor General To Anti-Gay Governor: You Are Costing Us Millions

Pennsylvania’s Auditor General, Eugene DePasquale, has released a statement taking Governor Tom Corbett (R) to task for costing the Commonwealth millions by continuing to defend its unconstitutional ban on marriage equality. Pennsylvania currently holds the dubious distinction of being the last remaining state in the Northeast with no legal recognition of same sex unions, and no statewide civil rights protections or LGBT citizens.

“It is unquestionably unfair to have people pay higher taxes on health benefits, or higher anything for that matter, simply because they are in a legally recognized same-sex marriage from another state,” DePasquale said.

He estimates that under the current law, a legally married same-sex couple living and working in Pennsylvania with a combined income of $100,000, where one partner works for the commonwealth, is taxed on the employer-provided portion of health benefits and annually pays approximately $1,600 more than a heterosexual couple.

“Now, with the state facing an estimated $1 billion budget shortfall, we cannot afford to pay $300-400 per hour to fight for an unfair law that denies recognition of, and penalizes, legally married same-sex couples,” DePasquale said. “We can’t afford legal bills like this when the administration is looking at making additional budget cuts. We’ve already seen the financial devastation from previous education cuts.”“It is not right that simply because they do not meet Pennsylvania’s legal definition of ‘married,’ the same-sex couple is forced to pay more in taxes because of the health care benefits that they receive from their commonwealth-employed partner.

In the past two years the commonwealth spent more than $10 million on outside law firms and legal counsel for the failed Lottery privatization effort, nearly $1 million more to defend the Voter ID law that was ruled unconstitutional and approximately $5 million wasted on the unnecessary ad campaign.

“Throwing away tens of millions of dollars in legal fees with a $1 billion budget hole looming is bad fiscal policy and bad public policy,” DePasquale said.

“Cutting out the millions of dollars in outside legal expenses won’t solve the budget shortfall, but it would be a step in the right direction.”

Despite his move to stop defending Pennsylvania’s unconstitutional voter ID law, which never went into effect after it was halted by a lawsuit, Corbett remains steadfast in his continued attack on LGBT equality. No matter the results of tomorrow’s primary elections, Corbett, the least popular governor in the nation, will face a pro-equality Democratic challenger in November.

Pennsylvania Judge Strikes Down State’s Voter ID Law

Commonwealth Judge Bernard McGinley has ruled there is no need for a voter ID law in Pennsylvania!

Democrats have been grinding their teeth ever since Pennsylvania State House Majority Leader Mike Turzai announced the new Voter ID Law passed by the legislature was “gonna allow Governor Romney to win the state of Pennsylvania.” Lawyers presented his statement in court as evidence the state’s newfound interest in voter fraud was just voter suppression in disguise.

To Leader Turzai’s eternal disappointment, the state’s supreme court kept the law from taking effect in time for the 2012 election. The justices sent the case back to the Commonwealth Court to investigate how the new ID requirements would impact legal voters, with instructions that the lower court must suspend the law if “liberal access to voter ID is nor ensured.”

Think Progress reports the Commonwealth Court has ruled. Judge Bernard McGinley struck down the law, issuing a permanent injunction against the voter ID requirement, writing:

“In Pennsylvania, the right of qualified electors to vote is a fundamental one. Therefore, Pennsylvania precedent does not permit regulation of the right to vote when such regulation denies the franchise, or ‘make[s] it so difficult as to amount to a denial.’”

Judge McGinley also dismissed the state’s claim they were concerned about voter fraud, saying he found such instances to be “exceedingly rare”.

The case will no doubt be appealed, once again, to the state supreme court.

School Fires Gay Teacher After He Applies For Marriage License

This is why ENDA is so important!

An openly gay teacher who was on staff at the Holy Ghost Preparatory School in Pennsylvania for 12 years was suddenly fired from his job yesterday - the same day he and his long-time partner applied for a same-sex marriage license. 

WPVI reports:

Michael Griffin says he emailed the principal of Holy Ghost Prep earlier in the week saying he may be late Friday, that he was applying for a marriage license. After an in-service day he says he was called into the office of School President Father James McCloskey, along with Principal Jeffrey Danilak. Griffin explains, "He said, 'It's not really a secret here that you're gay.' I said, 'Correct.' He said, 'I assume this is a same sex marriage.' 'Yes.' He said if I go through with it, he had no choice but to terminate my position."

In tears, he left. His over a decade-long tenure at Holy Ghost was over. "I really didn't think that it would happen. At our school we talk about it's a community our motto is 'One heart, one mind.'"

His partner, Vincent Giannetto, tells Action News, "We applied this morning and on the same day he's fired from his job. So it kind of flipped things upside down for us."

Holy Ghost is an all boys Catholic high school located in Bensalem, Pennsylvania.

Griffin has started to receive support from all across the country. He took to his Facebook account to show his appreciation :

“Thank you to everyone for all of your messages of love and support since yesterday. It is so overwhelming and my heart aches over everything that has happened. Holy Ghost helped form me to be the person that I am today. Even though I am no longer employed there, I wanted to share their mission and philosophy, because I feel like I have tried to make it my life's philosophy as best I can, even now. I am trying to move forward with a peaceful heart and wish nothing but the best to my colleagues and students who mean the world to me.”

Pennsylvania Judge Sentenced For 28 Years For Selling Kids to the Prison System

Mark Ciavarella Jr, a 61-year old former judge in Pennsylvania, has been sentenced to nearly 30 years in prison for literally selling young juveniles for cash. He was convicted of accepting money in exchange for incarcerating thousands of adults and children into a prison facility owned by a developer who was paying him under the table. The kickbacks amounted to more than $1 million.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has overturned some 4,000 convictions issued by him between 2003 and 2008, claiming he violated the constitutional rights of the juveniles – including the right to legal counsel and the right to intelligently enter a plea. Some of the juveniles he sentenced were as young as 10-years old.

Ciavarella was convicted of 12 counts, including racketeering, money laundering, mail fraud and tax evasion. He was also ordered to repay $1.2 million in restitution.

His "kids for cash" program has revealed that corruption is indeed within the prison system, mostly driven by the growth in private prisons seeking profits by any means necessary.

GOP County Chair Arrested, Accused Of Using Ambien To Drug, Rape Woman

The now-former GOP chair of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania Robert Kerns, has been arrested on 19 counts including rape, assault, and drug charges. It is alleged Kerns drugged a woman with the prescription sleep medication Ambien and sexually assaulted her several times. Last week he resigned as the GOP chair after being accused of sexual assault.

Kerns was “charged with rape of an unconscious victim, rape of a substantially impaired person, sexual assault, aggravated assault without consent, aggravated assault of a person unaware penetration was occurring and 8 other forms of assault,” the Raw Story reports.

According to reporter Carl Hessler, authorities said that Kerns had drugged the woman by putting the insomnia medication Ambien in her drink during a Republican Party dinner. He then allegedly raped her multiple times when she lost consciousness.
Ferman added that the Grand Jury described Kerns as “predatory and manipulative” and that there were often other victims in those types of cases. She urged any other women who had been assaulted by Kerns to come forward.
“I give great credit to the victim in this case, she was extremely courageous in coming forward and sharing what happened to her,” Ferman said. “I think she should be commended.”

He remains employed as the solicitor for the Police Chiefs Association of Montgomery County and for several local townships.

Pennsylvania Judge Refuses To Block Challenge To Gay Marriage Ban

Pennsylvania is the only state in the northeast that blocks gay marriage thanks to a 17-year-old law that bans the recognition of marriage between same-sex couples.

The law soon may be no more as a federal court challenge of the law has been allowed to proceed after U.S. District Judge John E. Jones III refused the motions brought up to block the challenge and dismiss the lawsuit, which was filed in July by the ACLU on behalf on 10 couples and a widow. It's just one of several legal challenges to the state's gay marriage ban.

In his 10-page decision, Jones wrote, "The jurisprudence of equal protection and substantive due process has undergone what can only be characterized as a sea change since 1972," rebutting the defendent's assertions that his court lacks the power to hear the case.

Jones scheduled a conference for November 22 and recommended the lawyers for the case come "fully prepared" to discuss a trial start date.

Pennsylvania Pastor Faces Church Trial for Officiating Gay Son's Marriage

Over the weekend, Rev. Frank Schaefer joined with his supporters at Coleman Chapel in Lebanon, Pennsylvania for a candlelight vigil.  No one had died: the vigil was for Schaefer himself, who is facing a church trial for officiating his gay son's wedding in Massachusetts in 2007.  The Lebanon Daily News reports:

Schaefer is pastor of Zion United Methodist Church of Iona in South Lebanon Township.

"We know of a lot of churches that are doing it," said Schaefer, "but we're hoping that a lot of churches that we don't know of are doing it."

Schaeffer said the prayer vigil were not just for him but for the gay community.

"People are called upon to pray for me as I prepare for trial, for my family, but also for the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) community at large, because this is for a cause. This is not just for an individual."

Schaefer could lose his ministry if he is convicted of violating church rules.  The United Methodist Church allows its members to be gay, but does not recognize marriage equality or allow LGBT people to join the clergy.

According to the Daily News, a group of over 30 United Methodist pastors in Pennsylvnia who support Schaefer say they will officiate a joint same-sex wedding.

Schaefer hopes that his church will reconsider its position on homosexuality, and credits his son with changing his own views:

"Everything changed for me when I learned that my oldest son was gay," he said. "I think we need to look at this issue again. This is not just an issue of theology. This is an issue of life and death for our young people."

Schaefer said that as a teenager, his son considered suicide because of his struggle with his sexual identity.

"We, as parents and as Christians, rallied around him and affirmed him, and it brought him through some very rough times," he said.

Schaefer's trial will begin on November 18th.

Gay PA Rep. Brian Sims on Governor's Incest Remarks: 'Vote Him Out of Office'

In a Facebook post this afternoon, Pennsylvania's gay Rep. Brian Sims reacted to Governor Tom Corbett's remarks on a radio show this morning in which he compared gay marriage to incest. 

Writes Sims:

All day long I've been hearing about the Governor's comments earlier this morning comparing marriage equality to incest. In truth, I'm not giving him or his comments all that much thought and I encourage you to do the same.

No one, not even his own party, would argue that he’s an intellectual heavyweight or even a particularly thoughtful person. The larger issue is that despite the fact that the majority of Pennsylvanians disagree with him, he continues to be the heaviest hitter in Pennsylvania’s anti-equality crusade.

Our job isn’t just to be frustrated with the homophobia coming from the Governor’s Mansion, it’s to do everything we can to ensure that his chapter in Pennsylvania’s political history is as sad and short as his record on schools, economic development and civil rights.

Tom Corbett has been a disaster for Pennsylvania for so many reasons and I hope this fuels your resolve to vote him out of office.

Judge Orders Montgomery County, Pennsylvania to Stop Issuing Marriage Licenses to Gay Couples

A Pennsylvania judge who said last Wednesday that he would rule quickly on oral arguments in a lawsuit filed by Governor Tom Corbett against Montgomery County Register of Wills Bruce Hanes (pictured) with regard to the 174 same-sex marriage licenses Hanes has handed out since July, has done so, CBS Philadelphia reports:

Without addressing the issue of the constitutionality of Pennsylvania’s ban on same-sex marriages, Judge Dante Pellegrini ruled that Montgomery County registrar of wills D. Bruce Hanes was acting outside his powers when he granted licenses to same-sex applicants, in defiance of state law.

In his ruling today in Commonwealth Court, the judge said that Hanes has “admittedly failed to comply with his mandatory ministerial public duty” under the marriage law.

The opinion goes on to say that even if Hanes is correct in his view that portions of the Pennsylvania marriage law are unconstitutional, the proper response is for aggrieved parties to bring an appropriate court action to challenge the law.

Developing...

Pennsylvania Defends Marriage Ban in Court, Says Gay Couples, Like '12-Year-Olds', Can't Marry

Pennsyvania Governor Tom Corbett's administration filed a brief Wednesday in defense of the state's ban on same-sex marriage seeking to halt the marriage licenses that have been handed out for a month in Montogmery County, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports: 

In a brief Wednesday, state attorneys said those marriage licenses were never valid, and compared gay and lesbian couples to "12-year-olds" who are also barred from marrying under state law. The state Department of Health and Montgomery County Register of Wills D. Bruce Hanes will appear in Commonwealth Court next Wednesday to argue the case...

..."Had the clerk issued marriage licenses to 12-year-olds in violation of state law, would anyone seriously contend that each 12-year-old . . . is entitled to a hearing on the validity of his 'license'?" the state wrote.

154 marriage licenses have been handed out to gay and lesbian couples since late July, the paper adds:

Thirty-two of the couples have petitioned to intervene in the case, arguing that a ruling against Hanes could also invalidate their marriages...

...If the couples wish to defend their "purported marriage licenses," the state wrote, they should file their own lawsuit or wait for the outcome of a federal challenge to Pennsylvania's marriage law.

PA Sues To Stop Same-Sex Marriages In Montgomery County

The Pennsylvania Department of Public Health today filed a state lawsuit to prevent Montgomery County and its clerk, D. Bruce Hanes, from issuing marriage licences to same-sex couples, the AP reports. Hanes first started granting marriage liscenses to same-sex couples last week, compelled he said by the ruling in United States v. Windsor and a desire to be "on the right side of history." While Pennsylvania does not ban same-sex marriage in its constitution as many other states do, the state did pass a law in 1996 that defines marriage as being between a man and a woman and goes even further in not recognizing same-sex unions codified out of state. It is this law that Hanes, an independently elected Democrat, is accused of "repeatedly and continuously" flouting in the suit filed by the state. Meanwhile, Montgomery County solicitor Ray McGarry has insisted that the county will continue to issue marriage licenses to gay couples and believes the state's lawsuit "has serious flaws." That lawsuit seems to be particularly concerned with illegal requests for benefits and the alleged "administrative and legal chaos that is likely to flow from the clerk's unlawful practice of issuing marriage licenses to those who are not permitted under Pennsylvania law to marry."