Bill Gates Addresses Allegations of Extramarital Affairs: 'I Caused Pain'
Mia Smith Bill Gates is admitting he made mistakes in his marriage, but he won't be delving into the particulars. A year after he and ex-wife Melinda Gates jointly announced their split after 27 years of marriage, the Microsoft mogul is being faced with renewed questions about his fidelity.
During an interview Tuesday on Today, co-anchor Savannah Guthrie broached allegations of extramarital affairs, asking the 66-year-old philanthropist, "Were you unfaithful in your marriage? Is that one of the reasons there was a divorce?"
"I certainly made mistakes," Bill admitted, "and I take responsibility."
As for the specifics of those mistakes, "I don’t think delving into the particulars at this point is constructive," he added, "but yes, I caused pain and I feel terrible about that."
Last May, his spokeswoman confirmed to The Washington Post in an emailed statement, "There was an affair almost 20 years ago which ended amicably."
When asked about whether Bill had multiple affairs, Melinda told CBS Mornings' Gayle King that those are questions he needs to answer. While discussing the affair he admitted to, Melinda told Gayle, "I certainly believe in forgiveness, so I thought we had worked through some of that." However, she noted, "It wasn’t one moment or one specific thing that happened. There just came a point in time where there was enough there that I realized it just wasn’t healthy and I couldn’t trust what we had."
Now that 12 months have passed since their headline-making breakup, the two are carrying on with their lives apart, yet linked as a result of their three children and as co-founders of their eponymous Gates Foundation.
"The divorce is definitely a sad thing," Bill acknowledged. "I have responsibility for causing a lot of pain to my family. It was a tough year."
But, he added, "I feel good that all of us are moving forward now."
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