By Meghan Keneally, David Mccormack and Associated Press Reporter PUBLISHED: 13:21 EST, 2 April 2013 | UPDATED: 13:45 EST, 2 April 2013 A second Republican senator has spoken out in support of same-sex marriage in less than a month. Sen. Mark Kirk of Illinois, who suffered a severe stroke last year and returned to the chamber in January, said ‘government has no place in the middle’ of two people in love, regardless of gender. Kirk, who previously opposed a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage, said in a post on his blog on Tuesday that ‘same-sex couples should have the right to civil marriage.’
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Sen. Mark Kirk of Illinois is the second sitting Republican senator to publicly come out in support of same-sex marriage
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He has blogged about how recovering from a stroke lead him to reconsider
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Last month Republican Senator Rob Portman changed his stance on the issue in light of his son's homosexuality
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But this week Arizona Congressman Matt Salmon said that even though his son is openly gay he does not support same-sex marriage
In the wake of his announcement, @placeholder was attacked by senior Republicans and angry voters.