Paxton promises to defend Texas sodomy law
Ken Paxton Ken Paxton — the Texas attorney general who has been under federal indictment now for some seven years on securities fraud charges and is currently under investigation by the FBI on allegations made by several of his once-closest top aides of abuse of power and bribery — made a big deal of announcing today that he stands ready to defend the Texas sodomy law, which was overturned in the 2003 Supreme Court ruling Lawrence v.
Texas. (Just an aside, Paxton — who paints himself as a defender of traditional values and the sanctity of marriage, has admitted that he has cheated on his wife.
Part of the FBI investigation underway now involves allegations that Paxton used his influence with a political donor to get the woman with whom he was having an affair a job.) Despite having been overturned nearly 20 years ago, the law — Section 21.06 of the Texas Penal Code — remains on the books.
So does the constitutional amendment Texans passed in 2005 banning recognition of same-sex marriage. And SCOTUS’ landmark ruling in 2003 and the 2015 Obergefell ruling that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide are based on the same fundamental right to privacy conveyed by the 14th Amendment as was Roe v.
