William Baldwin has launched a stinging attack on his younger brother Stephen's opposition to equal rights for same-sex couples.

Stephen, 41, is the only Republican member of the famous family, and his siblings despair of his conservative views. Eldest brother, Democrat Alec, has attempted to change Stephen's mind in the past, and he now has 44-year-old William on his back.

William - who dates a transsexual onscreen in TV show Dirty Sexy Money - tells Out.com of a recent row between the pair: "I asked him, 'Do you think a gay couple should be married? And if not, do you think they deserve access to the same rights on a federal level and state level that you do?' (He responds) 'Because God said and the Bible says that marriage is an institution that exists solely between a man and a woman, blah, blah, blah', and he falls behind that crap.

"And I said, 'Well if you had a choice - if you and your wife were to die and your kids were still young, and you had a choice between your children being in foster care and potentially being physically and emotionally and sexually abused, as opposed to being adopted by a loving, healthy, caring lesbian or gay couple, what would you rather have?'

"He couldn't really answer, and I said, 'Thank God Dad isn't here on this earth right now, because he would be so devastated and so horrified.'"

(This news article provided by World Entertainment News Network)