Justice Ginsburg invokes 'Constitutional' powers in same-sex wedding

WASHINGTON (Christian Examiner) – Invoking what she said are powers invested in her by the U.S. Constitution, 82-year-old Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg presided over a same-sex marriage ceremony Sunday, according to an article in the New York Times.

Ginsburg joined together in marriage, Michael Kahn, artistic director of the Shakespeare Theater Company in Washington, and Charles Mitchem, who works at an architecture firm in New York, Sunday afternoon, according to the Times.

The ceremony between the men took place in an opulent setting at the Anderson House in the Embassy Row neighborhood.

The justice appeared to place special emphasis on the word "Constitution," the article said, and the word was met with loud applause. The Supreme Court has been deeply divided over the issue of same-sex marriage and hearing arguments regarding state laws on whether same-same couples should be permitted to marry.

Justice Elena Kagan and Ginsburg previously have been asked to recuse themselves from the case since before the hearings Ginsburg indicated she had already made up her mind about the issue. Yahoo! Politics said April 27 Ginsberg reported she was in favor of legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide because of America's changing social views.

A New York Times columnist said Ginsburg told her in 2012 about she had a "strong hunch" about the outcome of the case. "I would be very surprised if the Supreme Court retreats from what it has said about same-sex unions," Ginsburg told Gail Collins.