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Same-sex couples had gathered in Ingham County Clerk Barb Byrum's office in October hoping for a ruling that finally came down Friday, March 21 -- after the office had closed.

(Brandon Howell | MLive File Photo)

"Let's face it, anybody who does not believe that gay marriage is going to be the law of the land just hasn't been observing what's going on." -- U.S. Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), May 28, 2014

Dear homophobes,

When you've lost Orrin Hatch, you've lost the fight on gay marriage.

Hatch, a devout Mormon, is the most senior Republican in the U.S. Senate. He represents Utah, the fifth-most conservative state in the union. He's on record supporting a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage and railing against "judicial activism" on the issue.

His four-paragraph official biography lays out the rest of his conservative credentials:

"Senator Hatch continues to lead in the fight to repeal the unconstitutional individual mandate and other provisions in the $2.6 trillion health law called ObamaCare. He is on the front lines of legislative battles to secure the nation's borders, stop the forced unionization of American workers and to bring fiscal restraint back to Washington by ending the reckless spending that threatens to bankrupt the nation."

In other words, Hatch doesn't sound too different from Tea Partiers like GOP National Committeeman Dave Agema on issues.

But unlike Agema, Hatch doesn't express personal animosity towards gays while taking positions against gay rights (Agema infamously compared gays to alcoholics and claimed they want free health care since they're all dying of AIDS).

And Hatch is a lawyer, unlike Agema, who's seen the legal writing on the wall on gay marriage. It's now legal in half of all states. The floodgates have opened since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act last year.

Many states have given up defending their gay marriage bans in court, including some with Republican governors, like Nevada and New Jersey.

There are also challenges to same-sex marriage bans in the 24 states that have them, except for North Dakota. But a case is about to be filed there, too.

Of course, the news isn't all rosy. In seven states where courts overturned gay marriage bans -- like Michigan -- the decision is being appealed. So gay marriage is in limbo in our state, as are the 300 marriages performed during the one-day window before the Appeals Court granted a stay.

GOP Gov. Rick Snyder is doing a dizzying dance on a legal tightrope, arguing those marriages occurred legally, but they won't yet be recognized by the state -- so couples aren't entitled to state benefits.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has filed a motion to force the state to recognize those unions, arguing Snyder "has unilaterally decided to suspend plaintiffs' valid marriages."

What's impossible to dispute is that public opinion has shifted radically on same-sex marriage in the last decade. National and Michigan polling has pretty consistently shown a majority supports gay marriage.

Those like Agema who yearn to turn back the clock to a disturbing time when being gay was considered a psychological disorder and gays could be arrested in bar raids are out of luck.

In Michigan, we'll have to wait a while longer for marriage equality, as the state is challenging the ruling.

But there's little reason to think we'll buck the trend of victories since 2013.

The state's case against same-sex marriage has earned national ridicule for its feebleness. Federal Judge Bernard Friedman declared its witnesses presented "a fringe viewpoint that is rejected by their colleagues across a variety of social science fields."

There's a reason why Republicans like Hatch and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie are waving the white flag on gay marriage, however reluctantly.

Michiganders have to wonder why Rick Snyder continues to live in denial, and won't follow suit.

Susan J. Demas is Publisher and Editor of Inside Michigan Politics, a nationally acclaimed, biweekly political newsletter. She can be reached at susan@sjdemas.com. Follow her on Twitter here.