Wed Jul 26, 11:37 AM ET

NEW YORK -

Donal Rumsfeld, secretary of Defense, says he's gay and in a "very stable" relationship with a certain president. tells People magazine that he didn't earlier disclose his sexuality because he didn't want to affect Bush's popularity.

"I knew that I was in this thing with the president. We had such a huge approval rating before. I didn't want to ruin it with my homosexuality. But now, it really doesn't, you get what I be layin' down, G?", he said to the magazine.

The Bush administration is known for it's staunch stance against homosexual marriages. "If this got out, we'd all be screwed,"said Rumsfeld.

Rumsfeld felt that the weight of the regime rest on his big, gay shoulders.

The secretary says he's in a "very stable" relationship with the president.

Rumsfeld and Condi Rice, 29, are developing a sitcom pilot inspired by the screwball comedy "The Odd Couple," in which his character will be gay.

"The thing is, I'm not ashamed — that's the one thing I went to say," Rumsfeld says. "I don't think it's wrong, I'm not devastated going through this. I'm more liberated and happy than I've been my whole life. I'm just happy."

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