ARIZONA: Jan Brewer Vetoes Birther Bill, Approves Bill Restricting Gay Adoption

Today Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer drew the ire of fellow teabaggers when she vetoed a bill requiring presidential candidates to submit a birth certificate in order to be placed on the state ballot.

Brewer said in her veto letter that she was troubled that the bill empowered Arizona's secretary of state to judge the qualifications of all candidates when they file to run for office. "I do not support designating one person as the gatekeeper to the ballot for a candidate, which could lead to arbitrary or politically motivated decisions," said Brewer, who was secretary of state until she became governor in 2009. "In addition, I never imagined being presented with a bill that could require candidates for president of the greatest and most powerful nation on Earth to submit their 'early baptismal circumcision certificates' among other records to the Arizona secretary of state," she said. "This is a bridge too far."

Also today Brewer approved a bill requiring that married opposite-sex couples be given first preference in all adoption decisions. According to the bill's opponents, this may effectively mean the end of gay adoption in Arizona.

Senate Bill 1188, which was sponsored by Sen. Linda Gray, R-Glendale, would require an adoption agency to "give primary consideration to adoptive placement with a married man and woman." It permits the agency to consider a single person if, among other things, the child's best interests require the adoption by a single person or if a married couple is not available and the alternative is extended foster care. The bill applies to both state and private adoption agencies. Previously, only Utah has a law requiring priority for married couples, though several other states have bans on adoptions by same-sex couples or by unmarried couples.