Mary Cheney, the openly lesbian daughter of US Vice President Dick Cheney, has given birth to a son. Samuel David Cheney was born this morning at Sibley Hospital in Washington, weighing in at 8 lbs., 6 oz. Cheney and her partner of 15 years, Heather Poe, live in Virginia. Under that state's law Poe is not considered a co-parent and has no legal rights. The pregnancy raised the ire of religious conservatives who accused Cheney of having the baby for political purposes to push "a gay agenda". In a February speech at Barnard College she dismissed the criticism, saying "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 by people on either side of an issue. It is my child." A week earlier Dick Cheney became testy when CNN's Wolf Blitzer asked him what he thought of conservatives who are critical of his daughter's pregnancy. Cheney told Blitzer he was "over the line." Samuel David is Dick Cheney's sixth grandchild. Ref: 365gay.com (m)