Dick Cheney joins fight for gay marriage: report

Is Republican firebrand Dick Cheney actively in the fight for marriage equality?

Perhaps. Buried in a story published yesterday by The Baltimore Sun was a reference to the former veep and lobbying efforts in Maryland.

Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley has introduced a bill that would legalize same-sex marriage in the Old Line State. Republican lawmaker Wade Kach — considered an opponent of gay marriage after having voted against it previously — told the newspaper he had changed his mind after a hearing and a last-minute lobbying effort including appeals from New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and former Republican National Committee Chairman Ken Mehlman.

Wade also said he had received an offer to meet and discuss the matter with Dick Cheney, whom Kach said was a “great man,” according to The Sun.

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In a post this morning, John Aravosis of AMERICABlog wrote that if Cheney had joined the fight the development was “freaking huge.”

Cheney is a known supporter of gay marriage and his daughter Mary is openly gay.

“I don't want to put the cart before the horse, since it would be nice to confirm this first, but it's hard to believe that someone just made this up when talking to Kach,” Aravosis wrote. “Not only is he a huge heavyweight, but he also provides a good deal of cover for other Republicans, like Governor Christie in New Jersey, who says he's going to veto marriage equality legislation just passed by that state's legislature.”

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The Huffington Post reports that direct confirmation has not been easy.

“A high-profile Republican close to Cheney told The Huffington Post that they had not heard about the former vice president's involvement,” HuffPost’s Amanda Terkel and Sam Stein wrote. “Another source close to Cheney pushed back against the report. Cheney's office was not immediately available for comment.”