As the plaintiffs in the Perry vs. Schwarzenegger case have rested, and the defense has taken to the floor in what has become one of the most watched federal cases involving civil rights since Loving vs. Virginia or Brown vs. Board of Education.

And while the usual suspects are in the limelight, the real story seems to be unfolding in the most unusual of places.

Last week we reported that neither Attorney General Jerry Brown nor Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger have agreed to defend the suit. It is highly unusual for an attorney general not to defend his state’s constitution. But these are different times, to be sure.

The case, being heard by San Francisco’s U.S. District Court Judge Vaughn R. Walker, a Republican appointee known for independence, appears likely to find an empathetic gavel, and will likely go to the 9th U.S. District Appeals Court, where GLBT leaders are optimistic that it will go their way.

In the end, leaders agree it will end up in the U.S. Supreme Court. But right now, no one is focused on the nine judges in Washington.

Instead, all eyes are focused on a most unlikely family. The McCains. As in former-presidential candidate Senator John McCain, who chaired the effort that successfully passed Arizona’s Proposition 102, the Marriage Protection Amendment.

While McCain finds himself in the middle of a rather unexpected-and problematic-primary, his wife and daughter appear to have found their voices.

Last week, Senator McCain’s wife, Cindy, and daughter, Meghan, publicly voiced their support for marriage equality for same-sex couples. And they say a picture is worth a 1000 words.

Both were photographed for the NOH8 campaign (www.noh8campaign.com), which was formed to protest passage of Proposition 8.

The photographs depict the McCains with duct tape over their mouths and NOH8 written on their cheeks.

The HRC was quick to issue a statement that captures the essence of the McCain’s actions, but also the underlying current of a trial that has turned the status quo on end.

“Cindy and Meghan McCain’s outspoken, public support of full marriage equality for loving and committed same-sex couples further underscores that equality is not a liberal issue or a conservative issue,” said Joe Solmonese, President of the Human Rights Campaign. “We are deeply grateful to Mrs. McCain for proactively reaching out and offering her support of our community’s equality. In households throughout the country, families are talking about equality and minds are changing. The McCains are a prominent example, but they are not alone. Little by little, family member by family member, there is no doubt that our country is headed in the direction of full equality for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, and Cindy and Meghan McCain’s courageous decision to publicly stand up will certainly be a beacon for others to follow.”

So it begs the question, who else can we expect to see stand up and find their voice on this issue?

Perhaps our own state’s First Lady? It would be a fitting tribute to her uncle, the late Ted Kennedy.

Our own mayor, Jerry Sanders, who just last week testified for the plaintiffs would make for a powerful image in a region that garnered 80 percent of the Yes on 8 votes.

Oprah Winfrey? Can you imagine the image going into millions of homes?

How about your 85-year old grandmother in Ohio who recently sent that note addressed to your husband?

And while Senator McCain would have probably preferred the duct taped family members to remain mum, the truth is that this case is making for the most interesting of bedfellows.

Take the plaintiff’s attorneys for example. David Boies, one of the most prominent trial lawyers in the United States, is most famously known as having represented Vice President Al Gore in the Bush v. Gore presidential election case.

His co-counsel, Theodore Olsen, represented then-Governor George W. Bush during the stalemate of the 2000 election, and later became U.S. solicitor general under President Bush from 2001-2004. Olsen is considered to be one of the leading conservative lawyers in the nation. This yin-yang powerhouse on the plaintiff’s side is just one of the many stories about the partnerships that have been formed in the fight for same-sex marriage.

The more people who stand up, speak out, the more people who find their voices during this battle, the more likely those nine folks sitting up in Washington will be likely to listen – and we’re sure the case will likely reach them in the Supreme Court.

Read the behind the scenes feature story “Challenging Prop 8: The Hidden Story” about how Hollywood activists seized control of the fight for same-sex marriage on page 28.