Mary Cheney facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Mary Cheney
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Cheney at President George W. Bush's second inauguration, January 20, 2005
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| Born |
Mary Claire Cheney
March 14, 1969 Madison, Wisconsin, U.S.
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| Education | Colorado College (BA) University of Denver (MBA) |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) |
Heather Poe
(m. 2012) |
| Children | 2 |
| Parent(s) | Dick Cheney Lynne Cheney |
| Relatives | Liz Cheney (sister) |
Mary Claire Cheney was born on March 14, 1969. She is the younger daughter of Dick Cheney, who was the 46th vice president of the United States, and Lynne Cheney. Mary Cheney has been involved with several groups that support political causes. She married her wife, Heather Poe, in 2012. She also signed a legal document supporting same-sex marriage for a case in the U.S. Supreme Court in 2013.
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Early Life and School
Mary Cheney was born in Madison, Wisconsin. She went to McLean High School in McLean, Virginia, and finished in 1987. After high school, she attended Colorado College in Colorado Springs, Colorado, graduating in 1991. Her mother and sister also went to this college. Later, in 2002, she earned a business degree from the University of Denver.
Mary Cheney's Career Path
In 1993, Mary Cheney was one of the first people to work for the Colorado Rockies baseball team. She helped with promotions when the team started playing in Denver. After that, she worked as a public relations manager for the Coors Brewing Company. She also helped the company connect with the gay community, which helped end a national boycott.
Mary Cheney was a key helper and trusted advisor for her father's political campaigns. In July 2003, she became the Director of Vice Presidential Operations for the Bush re-election campaign in 2004. Later, she worked as a vice president at AOL, a large internet company, until 2007.
Mary Cheney's Family Life
Mary Cheney and her wife, Heather Poe, have been together since 1992.
Mary Cheney has spoken out in favor of same-sex marriage. Many believe she encouraged her father to support it too, which he has done publicly since leaving his role as vice president.
In December 2006, news came out that Mary Cheney was expecting a baby. She and Heather Poe were very excited. Her parents, the Vice President and Mrs. Cheney, were also looking forward to their sixth grandchild.
On January 31, 2007, Mary Cheney spoke at an event. She said, "This is a baby... This is a blessing from God. It is not a political statement. It is not a prop to be used in a debate... It is my child." She gave birth to her first child, Samuel, in May 2007.
When asked about critics who opposed same-sex parents, Mary Cheney said that research shows no difference between children raised by same-sex parents and those raised by opposite-sex parents. She stressed that what matters most is being raised in a stable and loving home.
Mary Cheney had her second child, Sarah, on November 18, 2009. She and Heather Poe got married on June 22, 2012, in Washington, D.C.. Their family lives in Great Falls, Virginia.
Disagreement with Sister Liz
In 2013, Mary Cheney's older sister, Liz, was running for a Senate position. Liz said in an interview that she did not support same-sex marriage. Mary Cheney strongly disagreed with her sister's comments. She wrote online, "Either you think all families should be treated equally or you don't. Liz's position is to treat my family as second-class citizens." Mary then said she would not support her sister's campaign and would not visit the family for Christmas that year.
Heather Poe, Mary's wife, also wrote online that Liz had visited their home and spent holidays with their children. She added that Liz had seemed happy for them when they got married in 2012. So, for Liz to say she didn't support their right to marry was very hurtful.
In 2015, Mary Cheney was asked if she and her sister had fixed their relationship. She replied, "I don't have to answer that." However, in 2021, Liz told a TV show that they had made up. Liz admitted to Mary that she had been wrong about her views on same-sex marriage.
Mary Cheney's Political Involvement
2000 Presidential Campaign Role
During the 2000 Bush-Cheney presidential campaign, the campaign talked openly about Liz Cheney's marriage and children. However, they did not discuss Mary Cheney's private life. Still, many people knew that Mary Cheney is gay. Some thought her presence helped the Republican team seem more "compassionate." When a reporter asked Lynne Cheney about Mary being gay, Lynne said, "Mary has never declared such a thing," and criticized the media for focusing on it.
In 2002, Mary Cheney joined a group called the Republican Unity Coalition, which brought together gay and straight Republicans. She said that being gay should not be a big issue for the Republican Party. Mary Cheney later left the group's board in July 2003 to work on the Bush-Cheney 2004 re-election campaign.
Views on Marriage Laws
Mary Cheney did not publicly share her thoughts on a proposed law about marriage at the time. However, in her 2006 book, Now It's My Turn, she wrote that she was against the law. She stayed quiet earlier to support President Bush's re-election. In August 2004, Dick Cheney repeated his view that marriage laws should be decided by individual states. But he also said that President Bush's policy supported the national marriage law.
2004 Re-election Campaign
During the 2004 Bush-Cheney presidential re-election campaign, Mary Cheney worked as her father's director of vice presidential operations. This led to her being gay being discussed in the news again.
During the 2004 presidential debates, both Democratic candidates, John Kerry and John Edwards, mentioned Mary Cheney. They praised her openness about being gay when discussing issues related to LGBT people.
Dick Cheney thanked the senator for his kind words about his family and daughter. When asked if that was all he had to say, he replied, "That's it," ending the discussion about his daughter's sexual orientation. At the end of the debate, Mary Cheney appeared on stage with her partner and the rest of her family.
In the final debate, a moderator asked, "Do you believe homosexuality is a choice?" John Kerry replied, "If you were to talk to Dick Cheney's daughter, who is a lesbian, she would tell you that she's being who she was, she's being who she was born as." Dick Cheney responded, "You saw a man who will say and do anything in order to get elected. And I am not just speaking as a father here, though I am a pretty angry father."
Later Political Work (2010-2014)
In 2010, Mary Cheney became involved with several groups that work on political issues. She was part of a consulting firm called BKM Strategies. In 2010, she and two other consultants started two non-profit groups: The Alliance for Freedom and the Alliance for America's Future. They also created a political action committee, Partnership for America's Future, which is no longer active.
In 2014, Mary Cheney's consulting firm, BKM Strategies, seemed to be behind a campaign to support the Keystone XL pipeline. Many comments sent to the U.S. State Department about the pipeline used similar language and came from people linked to BKM Strategies.
Mary Cheney's Autobiography
Mary Cheney stayed out of the public eye after the 2004 election. But on May 4, 2006, she was interviewed on TV to promote her book, Now It's My Turn. In the book, published in 2006, Cheney talks about telling her parents she was gay. She shared her father's first reaction: "You know, look, you're my daughter and I love you and I just want you to be happy." She also wrote about her relationship with her partner, Heather Poe.
Some people who support gay rights criticized her for waiting until after the 2004 election to speak out against the Bush administration's views on gay rights. When asked why she waited two years to talk publicly about gay marriage and LGBT rights, Mary Cheney said it was not her job to advise the Bush administration on those issues.
