so too, i believe, will the rest of this country. >> chad griffin, thanks so much. chad, we understand you're going to be flying back to california. there is a party tonight, correct? >> this entire team is on our way to california to celebrate tonight. and tomorrow morning i wake up and fly to salt lake city, utah to a red state. >> all right. and jeff and paul, we understand you're going to be on your way back to california as well with other plaintiffs in the case, sandy and kris. but thank you all for the hard work you have invested in this. we do want to know wedding day details. because now you're on the hook. >> i'll hold him to it. >> gentlemen, thanks all very much. joining us now on-set, senator christine quinn and mayoral candidate in the city. your reaction. >> what a great day. it's just thrilling to have both of these cases, and particularly i have got to take a little home-town pride, edie windsor, a new yorker, have struck down doma. and think of what this woman did. after probably one of the worst losses in her life, her beloved wife, who she had tak

brian brown from the national organization of marriage, and chad griffin with the american human rights campaign, and let the opposition that sparked the court challenge in california to proposition 8. chad, let me begin with you. congratulations on your victory. what is next for you? will your organizations bring lawsuits challenging the gay marriage bans in more than 30 states? and given what we heard from the courts this week, do you expect it to succeed? >> look, there is no question, that was a historic week for equality in this country. and american values really did win. with the erasing of the proposition 8, same-sex couples in the state of california started getting married on friday. now that doma has been erased from the books thank to that historic decision, those couples across the country who are legally married, their relationships and their families will be recognized as such. at the same time while we celebrate, we have to acknowledge there are 37 states in this country that still don't have equality. our job is to work harder than we have fought before to bring equalit

chad griffin is exactly right to talk about what still remains to be done. i know chad is heading back to california right now. he's going to salt lake city right now. the battle is very different in salt lake city right now than it is in san francisco. with doma being struck down, that has very clear, very direct and i think immediate implications for so many direct benefits that are associated with marriage. that means base housing if you're in the military. that does mean burial rights in you're in the military, medical benefits. it has direct consequences for social security benefits, veterans benefits. on military bases right away these decisions will be made in a collaborative way so that they can be implemented properly. this is not a subtle thing, not a shades of gray moment. in the military, in the veterans administration, in every other aspect of federal life, this is done. this is settled. this will be a hugely practical step forward for couples who really have had second class citizenship with their states recognizing their marriages in some cases

. >> joining me now, chad griffin, dustin lance black, the academy-winning writer of "milk ". esident of the harvey milk foundation. so chad, you're out there in front of the supreme court today and all the celebration and noise. and you're in the middle of a group interview with thomas roberts here at msnbc, and your phone rings. you did -- did it say president of the united states on the caller id? >> it actually said blocked, lauren. so unfortunately, i couldn't get the number to call air force one back. the next time i would like to talk to the president. but it is not every day that you get a call from the president of the united states on board air force one. but if there is any occasion that warranted it it was the occasion of this celebration today. the fact that the supreme court struck down proposition 8. and we are here today celebrating what will very soon be the resumption of marriages here in this great state. >> dustin, you were in the courtroom for some of the arguments in these cases. we talked about it then. did it feel to you back then, at the argument stage,

\[applause] and the two decisions together, i have copies, really paved the way for what chad griffin just said, marriage equality in this country. with marriage equality back in california, 40% of the population in the united states is covered by marriage equality. and the doma decision, the framework that's laid out by the court in doma, paves the way for striking down marriage restrictions across this country, so this is a huge day and we're so pleased. it's a great day for the supreme court. the court has demonstrated its commitment to equality and justice and fairness, found that gay and lesbian citizens cannot be treated unequally, cannot be treated like second- class citizens. that's a fundamental, fundamental point, and it's going to carry the day. the wave that started four years ago in this country towards equality just got way bigger and it's going to sweep this country and we are going to have equality across this country for all citizens very soon. thank you very much. \[applause] now we'll take your questions. \[phone ringing] no questions. we silenced you. arean francis

i would like to thank kris and sandy for taking this ride with us, to chad griffin for his amazing strategic vision. to adam and the entire team at the american foundation for equal rights. and for the support that we have received from countless people that we don't even know but who will benefit just as profoundly from this ruling today. thank you very much. today is a great day to be an american. >> i'm not sure i can add anything after those three great statements, four, including our amazing lawyer. today is a great day. we entered this building and we always see those words. equal justice under the law. and today we're closer to that equality. we're lucky and we know that the fight continues across this country. we cannot forget our lgbt brothers and sisters that are in states that still discriminate against them. and we will not allow it. we will continue the fight until all of us are equal. prop 8 did one thing. it really helped us turn anger into action. it led to the foundation, the american foundation for equal rights. it led to this case and to today's victory, as well. and we st

today during msnbc's coverage of these rulings, chad griffin from the human rights campaign was asked, what he plans to do next, now that these cases have been won in washington. the doma case and the california prop 8 case. mr. griffin said he was going to go to california to celebrate in california, but then tomorrow he was going somewhere else to get back to work. >> it also says to that young person in hope, arkansas or altoona, pennsylvania, that marriage equality is coming to them very soon. this entire team is on our way to california to celebrate tonight and tomorrow morning i wake up and go to salt lake city utah to a red state. >> to salt lake city? to utah. utah, where same sex marriage is most assuredly not legal. the reason you go there next, though, is because here's what's going to happen. some happy couple looks like sean and steven, maybe. some happy couple who's married in new york or married in iowa is going to get transferred to utah for work, and that couple with their kids, pay their taxes, own property together, whose lives are totally interwoven thanks to all t

chad griffin, ed bard 'boys. we all worked together and let's continue to battle. thanks so much for everything you did because we wouldn't have achieved a victory today without all of you. thank you very much. >> city attorney dennis herrera. more reaction from the supreme court rulings this morning. as we've been telling you for the past hour the supreme court struck down the defense of marriage act on constitutional grounds. it also struck down basically proposition 8, saying that the parties that challenged or the parties that were trying to uphold proposition 8 didn't have standing to even take it to court. so that ruling is is out. you heard from some of the attorneys and from the plaintiffs involved. >> so our on the air coverage will take a break for now, but you can continue to follow it, number one, you can watch it live on our website, abc7news.com. we'll continue a live stream. follow us on twitter @abc7newsbayarea for the latest on rulings and reactions. you can also comment, like a lot of our facebook friends have on our facebook page, facebook.com/ab

when chad griffin the president of the human rights campaign interrupted with an important phone calltake a look at this. >> the president's on the line. from air force one. >> go ahead. >> hello, mr. president? this is kris perry. >> and sandy. we thank you so much for your support. >> we're proud of you guys and we're so glad that in california, and in a growing number of states across the country because of your leadership people are getting equal rights. so you guys should be very proud today and, you know, for your courage. you're helping out a whole lot of people everywhere. >> thank you, mr. president. >> it was like nixon talking to the astronauts. we'll be right back after this. >>> today's historic supreme court decision comes two days before the 44th industry of the stonewall riots. they're named after a big riot up here about equal rights in new york city down in the village which gay rights advocates say began the movement for gay rights in this country. it also comes ten years to the day of another supreme court decision, the lawrence versus texas case which struck down

he calls chad griffin. then you have secretary defense chuck hagel who comes out. he issues a statement. he's supporting this. the attorney general immediately issues a statement. he's going to implement it. you have the california governor jerry brown and the attorney general. they're immediately implementing it out there. there's a swift move here to make this happen, to implement same-sex marriage that is a dramatic shift from where we were just a few years ago. so the democratic party has moved leaps and bounds in just that short amount of time. >> thank you both for joining me. i really appreciate it. joining me as promised now, democratic congressman from georgia, john lewis, who passionately fought against doma when it was voted into law back in 1996. sir, thank you. as always, an honor and pleasure to speak with you. let me get your reaction today from this news from the supreme court. >> well, i must tell you, i was very, very, very pleased to see this decision of the united states supreme court. back in 1996 when it came to the floor, i said it was wrong.

lay "this julian assange, cried griffin -- chad griffin.arance by state senator wendy davis of texas. news sunday, fox with chris wallace talking with senators john mccain and chuck schumer. also republican congressman trey gowdy of south carolina and mario diaz of florida. state of the union follows at 3:00 p.m.. candy crowley talks with representative bob goodlatte of virginia. and louis gutierrez of illinois. also making an appearance is a lawyer for the couples who challenged california's proposition 8. host bob schieffer talks with senator wendy davis, texas state senator. former solicitor general bob olson and michael hayden. the sunday network tv talk shows are brought to you as a public service by the networks and c- span. c-span radio rebroadcast the programs beginning at noon eastern with "meet the press." 1:00, abc's "this week." 4:00 eastern, "face the nation." listen to them all on c-span radio, 90.1 fm in the washington xm area and nationwide on f satellite radio. download our free app for your smart phone. >> they had a treme

the president is calling to congratulate -- >> look at the faces of chad griffin and the other plaintiffs calling me on my cell phone -- i would just about lose my -- >> hal: to congratulate you on your newly-affirmed rights. >> i want to know when they're getting married. >> it is amazing news. i think it will take people a couple of days. i still haven't called my lesbian sister. >> what are you doing to celebrate today, karl? >> right now i'm working because now the work is in defending this case. bullfight strategies is involved in the pushing on these various cases or closely with the constitutional accountability center which filed an amicus brief in this case. we're happy with this decision. the fight continues. i said a couple of times during this interview, there are hundreds of thousands of gay people who were shut out by this court today. by not being able to take part in this and not be able to see the oral arguments because they couldn't afford to fly out here. drop everything yesterday when they found out they would have the decision today to stand in front of a building we

i would like to thank chris and sandy for taking this ride with us, chad griffin for his amazing strategic vision and the entire team for at the american foundation for equal rights and the support we have received from people we don't even know but who will benefit from this ruling. it's a great day to be an american. [cheers and applause] >> i'm not sure i can add anything after those three great statements, four, including our lawyer. today is a great day. we entered this building and always see those words, equal justice under the law. and today, we are closer to that equality. we are lucky and we know that the fight continues across this country. we can't forget our lgbt brothers and sisters. we will continue the fight until all of us are equal. proposition 8 did one thing. it helped us turn anger into action. it led to the foundation, the american foundation for equal rights and led to this case and to today's victory as well and stand on the shoulders of so many people who came before us, who risked their lives. they gave us the legs to stand up on today and the momentum to run with

[applause] and the two decisions together, i have copies, really paved the way for what chad griffin just said, marriage equality in this country. with marriage equality back in california, 40% of the population in the united states is covered by marriage equality. and the doma decision, the framework that's laid out by the court in doma, paves the way for striking down marriage restrictions across this country, so this is a huge day and we're so pleased. it's a great day for the supreme court. the court has demonstrated its commitment to equality and justice and fairness, found that gay and lesbian citizens cannot be treated unequally, cannot be treated like second-class citizens. that's a fundamental, fundamental point, and it's going to carry the day. the wave that started four years ago in this country towards equality just got way bigger and it's going to sweep this country and we are going to have equality across this country for all citizens very soon. thank you very much. [applause] now we'll take your questions. [phone ringing] no questions. we silenced you. >> san francisco

to chad griffin for his strategic vision. to the entire team at the american foundation for equal rights. and for the support that we have received from countless people that we do not even know, but who will benefit just as profoundly from this ruling today. they keep very much. today is a great to be an american. [applause] >> i'm not sure i can add anything after those statements. today is a great day. we enter this building, and we see those words. equal justice under the law. today, we are closer to that equality. we are lucky, we know the fight continues across the country pray we cannot forget our lgbt brothers and sisters that are in states that still discredit against them. we will not allow it. will continue to fight until all of us are legal -- equal. it helped us turn anger into action. , thed to the foundation american foundation for equal rights. it led to this case and today's victory. we stand on the shoulders of so many people who came before us. people who risk their lives to stand up and be who they are. th

to chad griffin for his strategic vision. to the entire team at the american foundation for equal rights. and for the support that we have received from countless people that we do not even know, but who will benefit just as profoundly from this ruling today. they keep very much. today is a great to be an american. [applause] >> i'm not sure i can add anything after those statements. today is a great day. we enter this building, and we see those words. equal justice under the law. today, we are closer to that equality. we are lucky, we know the fight continues across the country pray we cannot forget our lgbt brothers and sisters that are in states that still discredit against them. we will not allow it. will continue to fight until all of us are legal -- equal. it helped us turn anger into action. it led to the foundation, the american foundation for equal rights. it led to this case and today's victory. we stand on the shoulders of so many people who came before us. people who risk their lives to stand up and be who they ar

to chad griffin for his maiden that is amazing strategic vision. at the american foundation of equal rights and the support from countless people that we do not even know but who will benefit just as profoundly from this ruling today. thank you very much. today is a great day to be an american. >> i'm not sure i can add anything after those three great statements. today is a great day. we entered this building and we always see those words. equal justice under the law and today we are closer to that equality. we are lucky and we know the fight continues across this country. we cannot forget our l.b.g.t. brothers and sisters that are still in states that discriminate and do not allow. prop. 8 did one thing. it helped us turn anchor into action. --a nger. it led to this case and for today's victory as well. we stand on the shoulders of so many people who came before us. people who risked their lives to stand up and be who they are. they gave us a leg to stand up on today. they gave us the momentum to run with and that the voice to speak loudly and sa

. >> representing the american foundation of equal rights, ted olson, david boyes, chad griffin, we allbattle. thanks for everything that you did because we wouldn't have achieved a victory today without all of you. thanks very much. and i would just like to say, i'd like to ask terry stewart to come up for -- say a couple of words. our entire legal team worked day and night to bring the victory home. i want to give him a chance to talk a little bit. ing. >> thank you. >> you never see me at podium without the opinion in my hand. i just want to add two words. one is that we're excited about getting marriage equality back and even though it's a standing rule, it's a victory and it upholds the district court decision. there was a parallel case as you know the doma case and a lot of people sort of thought about which case should go. >> as we continue to watch what is happening at city hall, want to take you live to san francisco's castro district this morning as well. there have been crowds throughout the bay area. what's happening there, terry? >> reporter: right now here at castro and ma

>> chad griffin out for the supreme court he declared we'll have marriage equality in all 50 states inso i think that's a very ambitious goal. it will require -- probably a lawsuit for him to get there. but just getting american equality into 47 other states is the goal. there is an effort to do that. illinois is probably legislatively is probably the state that will happen next. legislative attention. some discussion to go to marriage in that state. but i mean, it is going to be a big process getting all of the states. a lot of them out there who had bans on marriage. >> bill: it will probably be, as you say take another lawsuit before the supreme court but it's almost as if the supreme court wouldn't have to work hard the next time around because they could take anthony kennedy's decision the way i've read it, and if you really follow the logic of his -- and the power of his writing and his decision, for which they already have five votes there's no way that states could discriminate against same-sex couples. >> yeah, i think people think the value of opinion is important because of

i'd like to thank kris and sandy for taking this ride with us, to chad griffin for his amazing strategic vision, to adam and the entire team at t american foundation for equal rights, and for the support that we have received from countless people that we don't even know, but who will benefit just as profoundly from this ruling today. thank you very much. today's great day to be an american. >> i'm not sure i can add anything -- >> -- proponents of gay marriage are celebrating today, the two huge decisions by the united states supreme court. there are those who are very, very unhappy. let's get some dissenting comments now, the reverend albert muller is joining us, the president of the southern baptist theology, joining us from ken, and tony perkins, president of the family research council. reverend, let me start with you. what's your reaction to what the supreme court has decided today? >> well, i think it's hard to overestimate the impact of the decisions today. i think, wolf, especially the doma decision. justice kennedy's opinion takes us to the brink of nationwide same-sex marriage

the female couple, if you will, kris perry and sandy steir, they were giving their comments when chad griffin said of the human rights campaign, standing nearby, gets a call on his cell phone from the president who's on air force i. he walks over to the couple and says hey the president wants to say hello and they had this conversation with the president. chad's got a cell phone on speaker. and the president starts having a conversation with him carried live on msnbc. >> griffin from the nrc talking on the telephone which i believe is with president obama. chat is right there. >> the president's on the line from air force i. go ahead. >> hello mr. president, this is kris perry. >> this is sandy steir we thank you so much for your support. >> we're prowferred you guys and we're so glad for california. >> bill: you can barely hear the president there. but the president is saying we're proud of you guys and very happy for california. that was a rare moment. >> you don't see that every day. >> bill: my cell phone goes off, it is the president of the united states. >> how you doin'? >> bill: great