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Cheney discusses gay daughter { August 25 2004 } Original Source Link: (May no longer be active)
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/08/25/MNGHQ8DV6Q1.DTLhttp://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/08/25/MNGHQ8DV6Q1.DTL
Cheney breaks rank on same-sex marriage
Vice president refers to daughter as lesbian publicly for 1st time
- Marc Kaufman, Mike Allen, Washington Post
Wednesday, August 25, 2004
Waterford, Mich. -- Vice President Dick Cheney spelled out Tuesday his differences with President Bush on the volatile issue of gay marriage, while for the first time discussing the sexual orientation of his gay daughter in a public setting.
Asked his position on the subject at a town hall meeting in Davenport, Iowa, Cheney replied: "Lynne and I have a gay daughter, so it's an issue that our family is very familiar with. ... With respect to the question of relationships, my general view is that freedom means freedom for everyone. People ought to be able to free -- ought to be free to enter into any kind of relationship they want to."
Cheney went on to repeat the position he first outlined in the 2000 campaign -- that same-sex marriage should be left to the states to decide. He noted, however, that Bush has endorsed a constitutional amendment preventing the states from recognizing such marriages.
"At this point ... my own preference is as I've stated," Cheney said. "But the president makes basic policy for the administration. And he's made it. "
The remarks were the farthest Cheney has gone in laying out his differences with Bush's position, and they took leaders of the GOP conservative base by surprise. Although Bush has rarely discussed his support for the amendment, conservatives viewed his stance as one of the most important social statements of his term. Republican strategists said it would motivate Christian voters to the polls even though it risks alienating swing voters.
The Family Research Council, a conservative group with close White House ties, called Cheney's remarks disappointing.
"Unfortunately protection of our values is made more difficult when mixed messages emanate from the White House," said Tony Perkins, the group's president. "We support President Bush's commitment to a constitutional amendment on marriage, but we are left to wonder why the vice president is allowed to depart from this position when the top of the ticket is unified on all other issues."
The Human Rights Campaign, the leading gay rights lobbying group, issued an enthusiastic statement after Cheney's remarks.
"President Bush must be feeling the heat," said the group's president, Cheryl Jacques. "Millions of Republican families, like the Cheneys, have gay friends and family members and are offended by President Bush's efforts to put discrimination in the Constitution."
Cheney's remark was the first time the vice president has taken note of his daughter's sexual orientation in public, officials said. Mary Cheney works for the Bush-Cheney campaign as director of vice presidential operations, responsible for her father's political travel and appearances.
In February, Bush announced his support for a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage, calling marriage "the most fundamental institution of civilization" and saying that courts were causing confusion and threatening to weaken society by changing the meaning of marriage. In July, the Republican- controlled Senate voted 48-50 against bringing up the amendment for a vote.
Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry and running mate John Edwards both oppose the amendment. Although the candidates say they do not support same-sex marriage, they defend the right of gay couples to win the legal protections afforded married couples. Explaining Bush's position at the town hall meeting Tuesday, Cheney said several judicial rulings were beginning to make the judgment for the entire country, and that the president proposed the constitutional amendment as a result.
Anne Womack, Cheney's campaign spokeswoman, said after the meeting that Cheney's comments did not constitute a change of opinion or policy. She said she could not say whether Cheney opposed the amendment and that "the vice president respects the president's right to make the decision."
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