From the New York Times:
Over tuna and turkey sandwiches, the advisers explained that New
York?s Democratic governor was determined to legalize same-sex
marriage and would deliver every possible Senate vote from his
own party.
Would the donors win over the deciding Senate Republicans? It
sounded improbable: top Republican moneymen helping a Democratic
rival with one of his biggest legislative goals.
But the donors in the room ? the billionaire Paul Singer, whose
son is gay, joined by the hedge fund managers Cliff Asness and
Daniel Loeb ? had the influence and the money to insulate nervous
senators from conservative backlash if they supported the marriage
measure. And they were inclined to see the issue as one of personal
freedom, consistent with their more libertarian views.
Within days, the wealthy Republicans sent back word: They were
on board. Each of them cut six-figure checks to the lobbying
campaign that eventually totaled more than $1 million.
More here.
In its take on the historic legislative action, New York
magazine writes
How do you get rich Republicans to support gay marriage? By
appealing to their libertarian sensibilities....Gay marriage has
always been an ideal niche for liberaltarians. After all, it's the
states, not the feds, that are the ones deciding whether it should
be legal, a question that feeds into libertarians' federalist
affinities. And when you strip away the cultural and identity
politics, gay marriage is really just a fight about whether the
government should be allowed to regulate personal liberty. On
that...libertarians side with liberals.
More here.
Here's hoping the next step is drug legalization!
Reason on gay marriage.
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