President George W. Bush's re-election campaign manager and openly gay former Republican Committee chairman Ken Mehlman expressed regret with his role in the 2004 campaign's anti-gay marriage agenda. Mehlman, who left the Republican National Committee to work for a private equity firm shortly after coming out in 2010, apologized in an interview for pushing against gay marriage in 2004.

At a personal level, I wish i had spoken out against the effort. As I've been involved in the fight for marriage equality, one of the things I've learned is how many people were harmed by the campaigns in which I was involved, said Mehlman in an interview with Salon. I apologize to them and tell them I am sorry. While there have been recent victories, this could still be a long struggle in which there will be setbacks, and I'll do my part to be helpful.

He is now involved in advocating marriage equality efforts across the nation. Mehlman has pushed for same sex marriage in New York, New Hampshire and Maryland, where a gay marriage bill was signed into law on Thursday. He also serves on the board of the American Foundation for Equal Rights where he was involved with challenging California's gay marriage ban, Proposition 8.

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