Van Hollen braces for judge to toss gay marriage ban

Sensing trouble ahead for Wisconsin’s gay marriage ban, Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen took the unusual step Friday of asking a federal judge to immediately block her own decision if she does strike down the ban.

Normally, lawyers wait until a judge rules against their client before asking for a stay. Van Hollen’s pre-emptive motion seems to concede the state will likely lose the case, at least initially.

The filing comes less than a week after the Republican attorney general said on WISN’s “UpFront with Mike Gousha” he would not be surprised to lose the case. Nonetheless, he said he had an obligation to defend the amendment to the state constitution approved with nearly 60% of the vote in a 2006 referendum.