The Massachusetts legislature is blocking a vote to put a marriage amendment on the ballot, even after legislative leaders promised before the election that there would be a vote, and even when a mere 25 percent minority of the legislature has a constitutional right to place an amendment on the ballot. Maggie Gallagher calls the move to block a vote “lawless.” In another post she calls the refusal to hold a vote “corrupt to the core” and “a clear violation of constitutional rights and basic decency….” Democratic governance has never been the strong suit of the movement for same-sex marriage. Massachusetts was deliberately targeted to begin with, in part because its constitution is difficult to amend. Now even the procedure for amending the constitution is being squelched in a manner that is questionable, to say the least. This is precisely why other states have rushed to amend, and rightly so. For continuing coverage, stay with Gallagher’s marriagedebate.com blog.