Former Republican chairman comes out of the closet

Former Republican chairman Ken Mehlman says he wishes he had come out of the closet sooner, having told a high-profile magazine in an interview that he is gay.

In an interview with The Atlantic, the former campaign manager for George W. Bush said that he had come to the conclusion recently that he was gay and wished to talk about it with someone, and become an advocate for gay marriage.

He is to participate in a fundraiser supporting a lift on California's ban on gay marriage in the coming months.

“It’s taken me 43 years to get comfortable with that part of my life,” said Mehlman, now working at a highly-respected New York private equity firm. “Everybody has their own path to travel, their own journey, and for me, over the past few months, I’ve told my family, friends, former colleagues and current colleagues and they’ve been wonderful and supportive. The process has been something that has made me a happier and better person. It’s something I wish I had done years ago.”

Finally, he says that he had tried to work within the Republican Party in getting members to more openly reach out to the gay community.

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Meg Whitman - former CEO of eBay - has campaign budget soar to nearly nine digits

Thank God for all of those Beanie Babies. Meg Whitman, an aspiring Governor of California and former billionaire CEO of online auctions company eBay has set a new personal record for campaign spending.

Reports are now in that put Whitman's total campaign budget thus far at almost $100 million.

The Whitman campaign reported on Monday that $20 million had been spent within just six weeks ending June 30. Her campaign is said to have spent $71 million to win the GOP primary against Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner.

According to a number of reputable sources, Whitman has put around $91 million of her own money into the campaign and continues to seek further donations from wealthy individuals from across the country.

She is, however, set to face some formidable competition on this front from her Democratic challenger Jerry Brown. Brown has received almost $14,000 from Dreamworks Animation alone - a company where Whitman once served as a board member.

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Gary Coleman dies at 42

Gary Coleman, the former child star of the hit 1970s TV sitcom Diff'rent Strokes has died at age 42 after having an intracranial haemorrhage, it was reported last night.

Coleman, who stood just 4' 8", had reportedly struggled to keep up with numerous legal, medical and financial troubles - and even ran against Arnold Schwarzenegger for the governorship of California in 2003.

He died in Utah where he had been no life-support since Thursday, after suffering the haemorrhage on Wednesday at his home near Salt Lake City.

He had reportedly suffered from kidney disease, which stunted his growth as a child. Coleman also attempted suicide twice by overdosing on pills, or so he claimed in a 1993 television interview.

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