David Koch, the billionaire
industrialist backing Mitt Romney's bid for the White House,
disagrees with the candidate's position on gay marriage.
Koch and his older brother Charles
co-own Koch Industries, the second largest privately held company in
the United States. They have donated heavily to several political
advocacy groups, including the pro-Republican Americans for
Prosperity, which David Koch chairs.
In an interview with POLITICO.com from
the Republican National Convention, Koch, who served as a delegate
from New York, said, “I believe in gay marriage.”
When asked about Romney's opposition to
such unions, Koch
replied, “Well, I disagree with that.”
(Related: Mitt
Romney, Paul Ryan touch on gay marriage at RNC.)
Koch, the 1980 vice presidential
nominee for the Libertarian Party, also said he now considers himself
a Republican.
“The Libertarian Party is a great
concept,” he said. “I love the ideals, but it got too far off
the deep end, and so I dropped out. I think the Republican Party has
a great chance of being successful and that's why I support it. …
But I believe in the libertarian principles.”