Washington, D.C. ? Although he recently expressed confidence that Mary Cheney will make a loving parent, President Bush continues to believe it is best that a child is raised by a man and woman married to each other, the president’s spokesman said Friday.

The pregnancy of Vice President Dick Cheney’s daughter, a lesbian, has reignited public discussion of gays becoming parents.

Some social conservatives, who strongly support Bush and the vice president on most issues, greeted the news of Mary Cheney’s pregnancy with dismay, arguing that it undermined efforts to emphasize the primacy of the traditional family unit.

Commenting on the controversy, Bush last week told People magazine that Mary Cheney would be “a loving soul to her child. And I’m happy for her.”