Mike Bloomberg Will Preside at the Wedding of Advisers John Feinblatt and Jonathan Mintz

Feinblatt and Mintz

New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg, in a gesture that shows a bit of his softer side, has offered to marry his chief policy adviser, John Feinblatt, and his partner of 14 years, Jonathan Mintz, who is the city's commissioner for consumer affairs. Delicately, Bloomberg mentioned that he didn't even know if the two wanted to marry, but if they did, well -- "If you'd like me to do it, I'd really love to," he said to Feinblatt, who got the go-ahead from Mintz, setting in motion the plan for "City Hall's first gay wedding," reports the New York Times. The two, who have two daughters together and took them ring shopping after the proposal, will be married on July 24, the first day that same-sex marriages will happen in New York City, on the lawn of Gracie Mansion.

This marks an exception for Bloomberg, who, though a longtime supporter of same-sex marriage, had previously vowed not to marry anyone other than his daughter or a former mayor (he presided over the marriage of his daughter Emma as well as the wedding of Rudy Giuliani). He explained,

"John and Jonathan are two of the smartest and hardest-working people in our administration," Mr. Bloomberg said on Thursday. "This just felt like the best way for me to say thank you."

Romantic Bloomberg is the cutest Bloomberg!

Political Turns Personal: Mayor Will Officiate at Gay Advisers' Wedding [NYT]