Politics on the Hudson

   A day after Empire State Pride Agenda criticized GOP comptroller candidate J. Christopher Callaghan’s position on same-sex couples married outside New York, the Log Cabin Republicans in New York on Thursday shot Callaghan a $2,000 contribution. That group is a national grassroots gay and lesbian organization.

   The Empire State Pride Agenda is a statewide lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights organization. The group said it favors incumbent Comptroller Alan Hevesi’s policy of recognizing that marriages between same-sex couples performed in Canada be treated the same as any other marriage when it comes to state retirement benefits. Hevesi is a Democrat.

   “J. Christopher Callaghan needs to stop beating up on gay families to advance his campaign,” said Alan Van Cappelle, executive director of the Empire State Pride Agenda.

   Callaghan, a Republican, has spoken out against the policy.

   New York’s highest court recently ruled that gay marriage is not legal in the state.