NOM’s Brian Brown.

Wait, what?

After being handed yet another defeat this week in the form of a 5-4 decision backing the District’s decision not to allow a referendum on marriage equality, opponents of same-sex marriage aren’t admitting defeat — they’re claiming that getting defeated was all part of the plan.

In a statement released yesterday, the National Organization for Marriage — on tour now! — argued that while they’ve lost every battle along the way, they’ll still win the war. “With the closely divided 5-4 DC Court of Appeal ruling today prohibiting a voter referendum on the District of Columbia’s gay marriage law, the way is cleared for us to finally get the issue before the United States Supreme Court, where we are confident of victory,” said NOM president Brian Brown.

But what exactly would their case to the court be, and how it would prove more worthy of consideration than the 10,000 or so other petitions filed each session? “The central issue in this case is whether the people of the District of Columbia will be able to exercise their constitutional right to vote on this important issue,” said the statement.

In related news, GLAA Forum tips us off to what may well be one of the District’s most fearsome political unions. Brown, along with Bishop Harry Jackson, has established the D.C. Values PAC, which will work to create an alliance between “black Democrats [sic] leaders and white suburban Christian Republicans to help elect pro-marriage and pro-life black Democrats in the District of Columbia.” At an event on Monday attended by an unstated number of supporters, three political figures were in attendance — one candidate for the D.C. Council and two ANC Commissioners. All told, NOM and Jackson have endorsed Leo Alexander for mayor, Kelvin Robinson in Ward 6, Delano Hunter in Ward 5, and Anthony Motley for At-Large.

It’s unlikely that any of those candidates will win — Hunter is the most competitive — but have no fear, because having them lose is all part of the plan too.