Indeed, following the open-ended logic of Proposition 8's lawyers, it is hard to think who, if anyone, is qualified to rule on this case. Certainly not wedded heterosexual judges whose marriages stand to be somehow diminished, according to the antimarriage crowd, if Judge Walker's ruling survives appeal in federal circuit court.

Some ethics experts say the ruling might have triggered credible conflict-of-interest concerns if Judge Walker were intending to marry in California. But that is misguided, too. There is no basis to think Judge Walker's personal relationship played a role in his ruling on the evidence and on whether a constitutional reason exists to limit anyone's freedom to marry.