Michael Bloomberg announced his support for same-sex marriage and said he’s willing to testify in favor of it at the same time as he is trying to win over the support of the city’s Republican Party, which, generally, is opposed to same-sex marriage.
Phil Ragusa, the Queens County Republican chair, who has been critical of Bloomberg, laughed when I asked if same-sex marriage was a Republican position.
“You know it’s not,” Ragusa said. “Is it a Republican thing? No. And he’s not a Republican.”
Ragusa added, “The vast majority of the 140,000 Republicans in Queens that I represent would agree with me that marriage is between a man and a woman.”
Then, with a little frustration, he added, “How many things can you do that are contrary to what we believe in the Republican Party?”
Craig Eaton, the chairman of the Brooklyn County Republican Party, which already endorsed Bloomberg, declined to comment because he said he was not familiar with the mayor’s latest remarks on the issue. He also politely declined to talk further on the issue.
Messages left for the G.O.P. county chairs of Manhattan, the Bronx and Staten Island were not immediately returned.
