Why Olson Defends Gay Marriage

Conservative lawyer Theodore Olson argued Bush v. Gore before the Supreme Court in 2000 and defended Bush’s counterterrorism policies after 9/11. Only now, however, does Olson say he is preparing for the most important case of his career: same-sex marriage. Olson filed a lawsuit challenging California’s decision to ban same-sex marriage, but insists that his desire to take on the case stems from “personal and legal conviction.” Rumors abounded, at first, that Olson had taken the case only to sabotage it. But he tells The New York Times: “For conservatives who don’t like what I’m doing, it’s, ‘If he just had someone in his family we’d forgive him.''' He continued, “For liberals it’s such a freakish thing that it’s, ‘He must have someone in his family, otherwise a conservative couldn’t possibly have these views.’ It’s frustrating that people won’t take it on face value.” But as Olson prepares to argue the case, the bottom line is clear: “This case,” he said, “could involve the rights and happiness and equal treatment of millions of people.”