Here is an unusual approach for a newspaper: Urge state officials to defend a voter-created law that they do not like and that the paper does not like.

That seems to be the view taken by the Los Angeles Times in an editorial today in which it urges California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Attorney General Jerry Brown to use state resources in defense of the controversial Proposition 8 gay marriage ban, which even the newspaper has opposed.

The editorial states:

We don't like Proposition 8, and neither does California Atty. Gen. Jerry Brown or Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. But there's a difference between opinion journalists and the state's constitutional officers. California's top public lawyer and its chief executive have an obligation to defend the laws of the state whether they like them or not -- and that should include the ban on same-sex marriage.

Their refusal to defend the voter initiative against a federal lawsuit wasn't an issue earlier because ProtectMarriage.com, a key group behind Proposition 8, was allowed to take the role of legal defense in the trial phase. But now that the case is heading to an appeals court, it's doubtful that the group can continue in that role. In general, the parties appealing a court decision must be directly affected by it to have legal standing. Schwarzenegger was sued, not ProtectMarriage.com or other supporters of Proposition 8, and the trial judge's decision clearly stated that the resumption of same-sex marriages would not harm heterosexual unions in any meaningful way.

It later adds:

Last week, a state court turned down a request by the Pacific Justice Institute to force Schwarzenegger and Brown to defend Proposition 8. Its decision was understandable; the governor and attorney general have a fair amount of discretion when it comes to determining their actions in particular cases. But just because the governor and attorney general made a legally defensible choice, that doesn't mean they made the ethical one. Proposition 8 was passed by voters and became California law. Voters have a right to expect the state to defend its laws.

This may make the paper's upcoming editorial endorsements that much more interesting to watch.