Newt Gingrich Says As President He Will Defy Supreme Court Rulings He Opposes Including The Right Of Gays And Lesbians To Marry, Standing Up For New Hampshire Families Urges Legislators To Retain Same Sex Marriage Law, Campaign For Gay Rights Ordinance In Helena Montana Begins, Avowed Opponent Of Same Sex Marriage And Republican Minnesota Senate Majority Leader Amy Koch Resigns After Revelation She Had “Inappropriate Relationship” With Staffer

Newt Gingrich says as president he would ignore Supreme Court decisions that conflicted with his powers as commander in chief, and he would press for impeaching judges or even abolishing certain courts if he disagreed with their rulings. "I'm fed up with elitist judges" who seek to impose their "radically un-American" views, Gingrich said Saturday in a conference call with reporters, reports The Los Angeles Times. In recent weeks, the Republican presidential contender has been telling conservative audiences he is determined to expose the myth of "judicial supremacy" and restrain judges to a more limited role in American government. "The courts have become grotesquely dictatorial and far too powerful," he said in Thursday's Iowa debate. As a historian, Gingrich said he knows President Thomas Jefferson abolished some judgeships, and President Abraham Lincoln made clear he did not accept the Dred Scott decision denying that former slaves could be citizens. On his website, Gingrich spelled out his views on courts. "While abolishing judgeships and lower federal courts is a blunt tool and one whose use is warranted only in the most extreme of circumstances … it is one of many possibilities to check and balance the judiciary," he wrote. "Other constitutional options, including impeachment, are better suited" to check wayward judges. "In very rare circumstances, the executive branch might choose to ignore a court decision," he wrote. Gingrich also said that as president he might ignore a Supreme Court ruling if it held gays and lesbians had the right to marry. "The Constitution of the United States has absolutely nothing to say about a constitutional right to same-sex marriage. Were the federal courts to recognize such a right, it would be completely without constitutional basis," he wrote. While his critique of the courts has been popular on the right, even some conservatives object to Gingrich's proposals on abolishing courts or impeaching judges over their decisions. Conservative legal analyst Edward Whelan called Gingrich's proposal for abolishing judgeships "constitutionally unsound and politically foolish." The Constitution says judges, once appointed, "shall hold their offices during good behaviour." And while their decisions can be overruled by higher courts, judges have not been threatened with impeachment over their rulings.

A New Hampshire group lobbying to keep same sex marriage legal in the state has sent a mailer to lawmakers urging them to vote to keep the unions legal. The Associated Press reports that Standing Up for New Hampshire Families is a bipartisan group working to defend the law. The House votes early next year on a bill to repeal the law and replace it with civil unions for any unmarried adults, including relatives. Standing Up for New Hampshire Families argues the majority of New Hampshire voters support the law. The group says the state should not strip people of rights. The law's critics argue marriage should be between one man and one woman for the purpose of producing children.

In Montana, Katherine Haque-Hausrath has yet to take the seat she won in the November city commission election, but an anti-discrimination ordinance for Helena, a cornerstone of her campaign, is gaining steam. According to The Independent Record, the ordinance, similar to one in place in Missoula, would protect Helenans from discrimination in housing, the workplace and public places, regardless of an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity. Missoula’s ordinance extended protection from discrimination to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals. As a result, residents there who feel a public accommodation, home or job is unavailable to them because of their sexual orientation or gender identity have legal recourse. The Montana Human Rights Network’s campaign for a similar ordinance in Helena is under way. Jamee Greer, an organizer with the human rights network, said interest in a Helena’s ordinance appears strong. A campaign kickoff at a Helena coffee shop in mid-November was attended by 120 people, three times as many as Missoula’s campaign kickoff, Greer said. He said the event featured a local faith leader and a state senator, as well as students from Helena High School’s Gay-Straight Alliance. Haque-Hausrath was also there. “There’s a lot of energy and a lot of excitement here in Helena,” Greer said. “It’s really great to see that.” Greer said 10 faith leaders and 27 businesses have shown support for the possible ordinance. About 500 people have signed a petition supporting an anti-discrimination measure. Marianne Niesen, pastor at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church, said she became aware of the issue through the American Civil Liberties Union and the human rights network. Niesen said she supports the ordinance because it’s an issue of justice. “In the past there have been times when these civil rights issues were around race or creed,” Niesen said. “Hopefully we’ve moved beyond a lot of that.” Niesen said many members of her congregation are supportive of the issue. She said as Christians, many advocate for basic human rights. “I don’t like the idea that we could have people living in our community who are discriminated against because of who they are,” she said. Haque-Hausrath said she’s talked with Mayor Jim Smith about the procedure of getting a proposed ordinance on the commission agenda. Once she takes office, the measure will be one of her top priorities, she said. Greer said a campaign event is scheduled from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Tuesday at Taco del Sol. The campaign aims to publicly display community support for the initiative. He said as the campaign progresses, the human rights network will work with the city commission and employees to write up proposed language specific to Helena’s needs. “This isn’t a one-size-fits-all kind of situation,” Greer said.

Minnesota Senate Majority Leader Amy Koch resigned from her leadership post the day after fellow Republicans confronted her about allegations that she had an "inappropriate relationship" with a staff member. "We're here today with a lot of humility and some sadness and even shock," interim Senate Majority Leader Geoff Michel said Friday at a hastily called Capitol news conference, reports The Star Tribune. Koch, the state's first female majority leader, was widely considered a hard-working and savvy campaigner who helped Republicans win control of the Senate last year for the first time in four decades. Her sudden resignation stunned Republicans, ending one of the shortest tenures for a Senate majority leader since 1933. The move will reshuffle the Senate leadership a month before the legislative session and less than a year before a high-stakes 2012 election in which Democrats are vowing to win back control of the Senate and the GOP will campaign for a proposed constitutional amendment that would preclude gays from marrying.