Recently, a federal judge ruled that DOMA, the federal law that says that marriage is only between a man and a woman, unconstitutional.

Today, the Justice Department filed an appeal of that decision, which is bad.

But they did in it a half-assed way, which is good:

Although Obama opposes the law, a Justice Department spokeswoman said that the administration was defending the statute because it was obligated to defend federal laws when challenged in court.

"As a policy matter, the President has made clear that he believes DOMA is discriminatory and should be repealed," said Justice Department spokeswoman Tracy Schmaler. "The Justice Department is defending the statute, as it traditionally does when acts of Congress are challenged."

I think that's the right tone.