Mary Cheney slams sister Liz for opposing gay marriage

Liz Cheney's sister takes her to task on Facebook for announcing her personal opposition to same-sex marriage

Published November 18, 2013 2:20PM (EST)

Liz Cheney           (AP/Matt Young)
Liz Cheney (AP/Matt Young)

Following sister Liz Cheney's decision to publicly announce her opposition to same-sex marriage, Mary Cheney and her wife, Heather Poe, have taken to Facebook and written a public response.

"Liz — this isn’t just an issue on which we disagree you’re just wrong — and on the wrong side of history," Mary Cheney wrote to her sister, according to the New York Times.

Cheney's wife, Poe, also wrote a separate note in which she asks the Wyoming Senate candidate — who has been ducking accusations of being a carpetbagger — how she would feel if "as she moved from state to state, she discovered that her family was protected in one but not the other."

Liz Cheney did not directly respond to either Facebook note, but did tell the Times, "I love my sister and her family and have always tried to be compassionate towards them. I believe that is the Christian way to behave."

All the same, the Times reports that relations between the two sisters, who used to be extremely close, are now profoundly frayed. Mary Cheney even went so far as to tell the Times that it was "impossible" for the two sisters to make amends so long as Liz maintains her opposition to gay marriage.

More from the New York Times:

“What amazes me is that she says she’s running to be a new generation of leader,” Mary Cheney said, citing her 47-year-old sister’s slogan in her campaign against Mr. Enzi, 69. “I’m not sure how sticking to the positions of the last 20 or 30 years is the best way to do that.”

Mary Cheney said it was her wife’s idea for the couple to take to Facebook to respond to Liz’s televised remarks. Ms. Poe seemed especially hurt that her sister-in-law had acted so embracing toward them in private, and then took this public position.

“Liz has been a guest in our home, has spent time and shared holidays with our children, and when Mary and I got married in 2012 — she didn’t hesitate to tell us how happy she was for us,” Ms. Poe wrote. “To have her say she doesn’t support our right to marry is offensive to say the least.”


By Elias Isquith

Elias Isquith is a former Salon staff writer.

MORE FROM Elias Isquith


Related Topics ------------------------------------------

Facebook Gay Marriage Heather Poe Lgbt Lgbt Rights Liz Cheney Mary Cheney Same-sex Marriage Wyoming