Kim Davis Out of Jail, but the Saga Continues
Davis’ name remains on the marriage licenses and she still stands by her convictions.
U.S. District Judge David Bunning ordered Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis to be released from jail Tuesday after her deputy clerks issued all the backlogged marriage licenses. A crowd of 5,000 and presidential candidates Ted Cruz and Mike Huckabee greeted her on her release. However, little has changed. While she sat in jail for a few days, Davis’ deputies altered the marriage licenses to remove Davis’ name from the form. But now that she’s back, Kentucky law states that Davis is the one who has to issue the marriage licenses, and her lawyers believe she may once again stop her office from doing so. The situation will only change once the state of Kentucky changes its laws to reasonably accommodate clerks who disagree with same-sex marriage. Nuance notwithstanding, the pair of Republican presidential candidates took the opportunity to publicly back Davis. Huckabee told the crowd, “Lock me up if you think that’s how freedom is best served, because folks, I am willing to spend the next eight years in the White House leading this country but I want you to know I’m willing to spend the next eight years in jail.” In reality, this episode is less about a war on Christianity and more about finding the balance between conscience and Rule of Law for a government official.