SALEM, Ore., May 16 (UPI) -- A federal judge has ruled that the anti-gay National Organization for Marriage has no standing to defend Oregon's constitutional ban on same-sex marriage and that he will make a ruling on the ban's legality Monday.
District Court Judge Michael McShane promptly denied the lobbyists' oral arguments, ruling that a private organization should not assume the role of the executive branch. In February Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum said she would not defend the ban as it lacks "rational basis" and she can think of no arguments to support it. The National Organization for Marriage had sought to step in on her behalf.