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17 May 2011

Hedge Fund Managers, The Mayor And Republicans Join The Fight For Same Sex Marriage in NY

HedgeCo News - - A group of three hedge fund managers, Paul E. Singer, a "top-tier Republican donor," Steven A. Cohen and Clifford S. Asness have decided to back, financially and otherwise, the establishment of same-sex marriage in the state of New York, the New York Times reported.

Some comments in the Times include:

- "An unexpected source: a group of conservative financiers and wealthy donors to the Republican Party, most of whom are known for bankrolling right-leaning candidates and causes." The Times reported.

- "I'm a pretty straight-down-the-line small-government guy," Asness, a self-described libertarian, told the New York paper. "This is an issue of basic freedom," he said.

- "We believe in social justice for all Americans," said Cohen, who runs SAC Capital Advisers and is a frequent fundraiser for Republicans.

- "I think it is important in particular for Republicans to know this is a bipartisan issue," said hedge fund manager Daniel Loeb, who has donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to the cause. "If they're Republican, they will not be abandoned by the party for supporting this. On the contrary, I think they will find that there is a whole new world of people who will support them on an ongoing basis if they support this cause."

- "The involvement of Mr. Singer is the most striking," the Times reported, "given his devotion to conservative candidates and philanthropy: He is chairman of the Manhattan Institute, a right-leaning research group, and one of the most generous Republican donors in the country. But he also has a personal stake in the issue: he has a gay son who married his partner in Massachusetts, where same-sex marriage is legal."

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a billionaire businessman and philanthropist, is also planning a fundraiser for the cause at his Upper East Side town house and will be giving $100,000 of his own money, as well as lobbying lawmakers at the state capital and giving a speech on the issue.

The donations from the Republican donors total about two-thirds of the same-sex marriage coalition's fund raising. On Sunday, supporters and opponents of same-sex marriage held competing rallies in Manhattan and the Bronx, the New American reported.