AFA's Lawyer: DOMA Is Unconstitutional

The American Family Association's in-house attorney says that while he and many members of his organization believe that marriage should be reserved only for heterosexual adults, the Defense of Marriage Act is "probably unconstitutional."

Pat Vaughn appeared on the Tuesday edition of the AFA Report to talk about President Barack Obama's recent directive to the Department of Justice to stop defending the 15-year-old law barring federal recognition of state-sanctioned marriages or civil unions for same-sex couples.

Cohost Ed Vitagliano asked Vaughn whether former House speaker Newt Gingrich is right to say Obama's actions were an "impeachable offense." Vaughn replied, "I think that Newt Gingrich is an astute politician and he is playing this for all it's worth. I think that marriage is defined by God as between a man and a woman. However, the Defense of Marriage Act is probably unconstitutional, particularly ... if you attempt to apply it so that to say that a marriage conducted in one state is not in effect in another. That clearly violates the Constitution."