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Nation
High Court Blocks Utah Gay Marriages Same-sex couples given right to wed just weeks earlier Salt Lake City Gay couples in Utah were thrust into legal limbo Monday as the U.S. Supreme Court put a halt to samesex marriages in the state, turning jubilation to doubt just weeks after a judge’s ruling sent people rushing to get married. The justices did not rule on the merits of the case or on same-sex marriage bans in general. The deci-
sion stays in effect while the Denver-based 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals considers the long-term question of whether gay couples have a right to wed in Utah. For those couples who just got married — or were planning their nuptials — the latest twist in the legal battle clouds what was seen as a cause for celebration. “It feels like we are secondclass citizens during the stay,” said Moudi Sbeity, who is waiting to get married until the legal process plays out. “There’s also the fear of the unknown of what might come next.”
Sbeity and partner Derek Kitchen are among three couples who brought the Utah lawsuit that led to the surprise Dec. 20 ruling by U.S. District Judge Robert Shelby, who said the state’s ban on samesex marriage violated gay and lesbian couples’ constitutional rights. State officials praised Monday’s decision to put a hold on things, saying it should have come earlier. Two previous courts turned down their request for a stay. Many believe the Supreme Court will settle the issue for good. Others doubt the high court will step in any time soon. In June, the jus-
Utah is trying to determine whether the marriages that have already taken place are still valid. Marriage licenses issued in 2008 in California prior to the passage of the state’s same-sex marriage ban were eventually upheld by the state supreme court. But marriage licenses issued in San Francisco in 2004 after Mayor Gavin Newsom told city officials to grant them were later invalidated by the state supreme court. That leads some to believe a court will need to rule on Utah’s marriages.(AP)
Senate Confirms Yellen as Head of Federal Reserve
BR ADY McCOMBS AND MARK SHERMAN (AP)
JUSTIN L. FOWLER (THE STATE JOURNAL-REGISTER/AP)
In Brief
Washington The Senate confirmed Janet Yellen on Monday as the first woman to lead the Federal Reserve, elevating an advocate of fighting unemployment and a backer of the central bank’s efforts to spur the economy with low interest rates and massive bond purchases. Yellen, 67, will replace Ben BerYellen n a n ke , w ho i s stepping down after serving as chairman for eight years dominated by the Great Recession and the Fed’s efforts to combat it. Senators confirmed her by 56-26, with numerous absences caused by airline flight delays forced by arctic temperatures around much of the country. All 45 voting Democrats were joined by 11 Republicans in supporting Yellen, while 26 Republicans voted “no.” Vice chair of the Fed since 2010, Yellen begins her four-year term as leader of the century-old bank on Feb. 1. AL AN FR AM (AP)
tices decided not to weigh in on the constitutionality of defining marriage as being between a man and woman, relying instead on a technical legal argument to resolve the issue in California and clear the way for same-sex marriage in the state. The ruling Monday doesn’t necessarily give any indication of how the justices would rule on the issue, said Douglas NeJaime, a professor of law at the University of California, Irvine. He believes justices want the issue to work its way through normal legal channels before they weigh in.
Still Married?
Bill Brasche braves the subzero temperatures and bitter wind chills to clear out his driveway Monday in Springfield, Ill.
‘It’s Not Cold; It’s Painful’ Most dangerous temps in decades push across the U.S. Minneapolis The coldest, most dangerous blast of polar air in decades gripped the Midwest and pushed toward the East and South on Monday, closing schools, grounding flights and forcing people to pull their hoods and scarves tight to protect exposed skin from nearly instant frostbite. Many across the nation’s midsection went into virtual hibernation, while others dared to venture
187M
The number of people who could feel the effects of the “polar vortex” by the time it spreads across the country through today, forecasters said. (AP)
out in temperatures that plunged well below zero. “I’m going to try to make it two blocks without turning into crying man,” said Brooks Grace of Minneapolis, where temperatures reached 20 below, with wind chills of minus50. “It’s not cold; it’s painful.” The mercury also dropped into negative territory in Milwaukee,
St. Louis and Chicago, which set a record for the date at minus-16. Wind chills across the region were 40 below and colder. Record lows were possible in the East and South today, with highs in the single digits expected in Georgia and Alabama. Below-zero wind chills were forecast up and down the coast, including minus-12 in Baltimore. For a big swath of the Midwest, the subzero cold moved in behind another winter wallop: more than a foot of snow and high winds. Nearly 3,200 flights — one out of every 10 domestic departures — were canceled Monday morning. RICK CALLAHAN AND STEVE KARNOWSKI (AP)
WASHINGTON
Cheney Drops Senate Bid Liz Cheney, daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, on Monday abandoned her effort to unseat Republican incumbent Sen. Mike Enzi of Wyoming. Cheney cited “serious health issues” that “have recently arisen in our family” as the reason. Her candidacy had caused a public rift with her sister, Mary, a lesbian, over Liz Cheney’s opposition to gay marriage. (AP) SAN FRANCISCO
Brain-Dead Girl Is Moved Jahi McMath, 13, the California girl who was declared brain dead after suffering complications from sleep apnea surgery, is being cared for at a facility that shares her family’s belief that she still is alive, her uncle said Monday. The family would not disclose where she was taken. (AP) CHICAGO
Judge: Chicago’s Ban on Gun Sales Goes Too Far A federal judge has ruled that Chicago’s ban on the sale of firearms is unconstitutional. Judge Edmond E. Chang issued his ruling Monday, saying the ordinance goes too far in outright banning legal buyers and dealers from engaging in lawful acquisitions and sales of firearms. (AP)