No, Butch Otter is the state of #Idaho's current Republican governor (think about the people that voted in someone with that name, including my parents: who reside in Potato Land) and he is in the news today as the 9th Circuit court heard marriage equality cases from his state as well as Nevada and Hawaii.
First in Hawaii: Though lawmakers made Marriage Equality the law of the land, a case still remains questioning whether or not #Hawaii's marriage ban should be struck down as constitutional or if the case is moot.
In 2012, a Federal Judge in #Nevada upheld the state's marriage ban when 6 same sex couples sued to have it overturned. The 9th Circuit deemed gays a "protected class" in a seperate case, and the governor of Nevada has refused to testify for the defense of the ban and no longer supports it.
Lastly Idaho's marriage ban was ruled unconstitutional earlier this year when a Federal District Court Judge struck down the state's ban on marriage equality. Ol' Governor Otter appealed the decision to the 9th circuit.
Oral arguments begin today in San Francisco for the three combined cases at the 9th Circuit. Hopefully the 9th will join the 10th, 4th, and 7th Circuit courts in affirming the freedom to marry.
These cases come after a teeter-tottering last week between losing and winning the freedom to marry in different parts of the U.S. Last week saw a judge uphold a marriage ban in Louisianna- a first in the south. Meanwhile an appealatte court ruled 3-0 striking down marriage bans in Wisconsin and in Indiana. This would bring the total number of states in America with marriage equality to 21, but the decision was stayed.
Judge Richard Posner wrote in his decision striking down the bans on Wisconsin and Indiana:
"Homosexuals are among the most stigmatized, misunderstood, and discriminated-against minorities,” he wrote. Denying them the freedom to marry imposes “continuing pain,” he said, and claims that allowing same-sex marriage would harm heterosexual unions or children, or other state interests, were “totally implausible.”
Victories in Idaho and Nevada would further propell the number to 23.
Hopefully Butch Otter doesn't get his way. No, not this Butch Otter.
Nope, not this one either: 
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#9thCircuit #dimu #7thcircuitappeal
