Titular TV role for Sandra Oh / SAT 12-14-24 / Arabic for "greater" / Soft drink since 1905 / Post-run celebrations / Grp. whose first letter is now outdated / Doja Cat's given first name, for which her debut album is named / Fashion aesthetic with flower crowns and rustic dresses / Midwest city named in an attempt to attract German settlers / Lead character in "Stranger Things"? / A Swiftie might have a favorite one / Indoor-grown marijuana, in slang

Constructor: Owen Bergstein

Relative difficulty: Easy-Medium

THEME: none 

Word of the Day: United States v. Windsor (32A: Subject of United States v. Windsor (2013)) —

United States v. Windsor, 570 U.S. 744 (2013), is a landmark United States Supreme Court civil rights case concerning same-sex marriage. The Court held that Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which denied federal recognition of same-sex marriages, was a violation of the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment.

Edith Windsor and Thea Spyer, a same-sex couple residing in New York, had their marriage recognized by the state of New York in 2008; Spyer died in 2009, leaving her entire estate to Windsor. Windsor sought to claim the federal estate tax exemption for surviving spouses, but was barred from doing so by Section 3 of DOMA. Seeking a refund, Windsor sued the federal government in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. [...] District Judge Barbara S. Jones ruled that Section 3 of DOMA was unconstitutional, and her ruling was affirmed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

The Supreme Court granted certiorari in December 2012 and handed down its judgment on June 26, 2013. In the majority opinion, which was joined by four other justices, Justice Anthony Kennedy declared Section 3 of DOMA to be unconstitutional "as a deprivation of the liberty of the person protected by the Fifth Amendment". He further wrote: "The federal statute is invalid, for no legitimate purpose overcomes the purpose and effect to disparage and to injure those whom the State, by its marriage laws, sought to protect in personhood and dignity." Four justices filed dissenting opinions, including Justice Antonin Scalia, who argued that the Court had "no power under the Constitution to invalidate this democratically adopted legislation". [...]

Two years later, in the case of Obergefell v. Hodges (2015), the Court struck down all state bans on same-sex marriage, ruling that marriage is guaranteed to same-sex couples by both the Due Process Clause and the Equal Protection Clause. (wikipedia)

This one was trying real, Real hard to be current, contemporary, now, "original," and sometimes it works, but LOL I'm supposed to know Doja Cat's real name?? Isn't it enough that I know Doja Cat at all? AMALA is never going to be good fill no matter how you clue it, no matter who it's attached to (7D: Doja Cat's given first name, for which her debut album is named). As with yesterday, I feel like all I'm doing these days is tapping the sign ("Not All Debuts Are Good") (actually, technically not a debut—though a modern debut, for sure; AMALA last appeared in the grid 60 years ago, clued as [Law court official, in India]). The pop culture runs very up-to-date, with (yet another) ERAs Tour reference, and a Killing EVE reference (22A: Titular TV role for Sandra Oh), and a BTS reference, and a Stranger Things reference (though that was a "letteral" clue, so knowledge about the show itself was not required). Two electric car references. Marijuana slang. And then COTTAGECORE, a real 2010s social media phenomenon (33A: Fashion aesthetic with flower crowns and rustic dresses). Anyway, sometimes you get a puzzle for the kids (for me, anyone under 40), and that's OK. Didn't thrill me, but it was very doable for a Saturday, even a little on the easy side. Most of the longer answers are lovely, or at least marquee-worthy, with only EZ PASS TAGS hitting my ears with a clank (I got EZ PASS fine, but when LANES didn't fit, I just shrugged and waited for crosses) (6D: They really take a toll nowadays). I know the TAGS are real things, but meh, not a great answer imho (esp. as clued, with the "really" doing absolutely nothing and "take a toll" being forced phrasing for what the tags actually do). I get that you find stray DRYER SHEETs in the laundry room sometimes, but "leftover" doesn't make much sense to me (51A: Laundry room leftover). That implies that you had too many, which ... why? Left behind? Maybe. But "leftover" I don't get. Anyway, there was a slightly desperate vibe to this one's bid for now-ness, and certain clues meant to be "trick" felt strained. But overall it felt pretty solid. Nothing too eye-rollingly bad. EXCUSEZ-MOI was a nice, fun, sassy opening long answer (13A: Cutesy expression borrowed from French), and there were lots of other things to love along the way.