Dick Cheney Makes Statement About Daughters' Gay Marriage Feud

Former Vice President Dick Cheney's two daughters made headlines this week for their feud on marriage equality: Liz Cheney, who is running in a Republican primary for Wyoming's US Senate seat, has come out firmly against same-sex marriage despite her sister being lesbian and married to a woman. Now Dick Cheney and his wife, Lynne, have released a statement, responding to the sister's national argument.

"This is an issue we have dealt with privately for many years, and we are pained to see it become public," the statement reads, according to NBC. "Since it has, one thing should be clear. Liz has always believed in the traditional definition of marriage. She has also always treated her sister and her sister's family with love and respect, exactly as she should have done. Compassion is called for, even when there is a disagreement about such a fundamental matter and Liz's many kindnesses shouldn't be used to distort her position."

The drama started when Liz Cheney told "Fox News Sunday" that she opposes gay marriage and disagrees with her sister Mary Cheney, who later took to Facebook to tell her sister she is "just wrong."

"Couldn't have said it better myself. Liz - this isn't just an issue on which we disagree - you're just wrong - and on the wrong side of history," she wrote. Mary Cheney's partner, Heather Poe, also issued a statement via Facebook.

"I was watching my sister-in-law on Fox News Sunday (yes Liz, in fifteen states and the District of Columbia you are my sister-in-law) and was very disappointed to hear her say 'I do believe in the traditional definition of marriage,'" she wrote. "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.

"To have her now say she doesn't support our right to marry is offensive to say the least," she continued. "I can't help but wonder how Liz would feel if as she moved from state to state, she discovered that her family was protected in one but not the other. I always thought freedom meant freedom for EVERYONE."

Dick Cheney, though a member of the GOP, supports marriage equality in states that have legalized it, the Associated Press reports.