Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Melinda French Gates says she is ‘friendly’ but not friends with Bill Gates

Melinda French Gates says she is ‘friendly’ but not friends with Bill Gates

Billionaire says she gave ‘every single piece of myself’ to 27-year marriage to Microsoft co-founder and says many factors led to divorce
Melinda French Gates has addressed her divorce from Bill Gates publicly, saying that although she and the Microsoft co-founder are “friendly at this point”, she is not ready to label her relationship with Gates as “friends”.

In a recent interview with CBS’s Gayle King, French Gates said multiple factors resulted in the couple’s high-profile divorce last May after 27 years of marriage.

“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. I couldn’t trust what we had,” the billionaire philanthropist said.

French Gates revealed that she cried numerous times during her marriage, sometimes while lying on the floor. “How can I get up? How am I going to move?” she would ask herself, she said.

“I gave every single piece of myself to this marriage. I was committed to this marriage on the day we got engaged and until the day I got out of it … but I also think society used to put things on women like it was our fault,” she said. “I did nothing wrong so I hold my head high.”

In 2021, Gates acknowledged that he had an affair with a Microsoft employee, which Microsoft asked its board to investigate shortly before his resignation from the board in 2020.

“There was an affair almost 20 years ago which ended amicably,” said Gates’s spokesperson Bridgitt Arnold.

Speaking about the affair, French Gates said she “certainly believe[s] in forgiveness, and so I thought we had worked through some of that”.

When asked about one report that claimed Gates had multiple affairs, French Gates said: “You know, I think those are questions Bill needs to answer.”

She said Bill Gates’s frequent meetings with financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein played a role in the divorce. She said: “I did not like that he had meetings with Jeffrey Epstein … I made that clear to him.”

She added that she met Epstein once, because “I wanted to see who this man was and I regretted it from the second I stepped in the door”.

“He was abhorrent, evil personified. I had nightmares about it afterwards,” French Gates said.

Pressed about Gates’s continued meetings with Epstein despite her disapproval, she said: “Any of the questions remaining about Bill’s relationship … those are for Bill to answer.”

French Gates said she will keep working with her former husband at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which they co-founded more than 20 years ago.

“We certainly have a working relationship and I would say we’re friendly at this point,” she said.

“Friends?” King asked.

French Gates said: “Friends is a different word for me … that might come over time but for me there’s still healing that needs to happen.”

She said that she is open to falling in love and dating again. “I hope that happens for me again. I’m dipping my toe in that water a little bit,” she said.

Last month, French Gates announced she would no longer be channeling the majority of her wealth through the Gates Foundation, one of the world’s largest philanthropic organizations.

“I think philanthropy is most effective when it prioritizes flexibility over ideology – and why in my work at the foundation and Pivotal Ventures I’ll continue to seek out new partners, ideas and perspectives,” French Gates wrote, referring to her investment and incubation company that she founded in 2015.
AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
Western Europe Records Hottest June on Record
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
France Requests Airlines to Cut Flights at Paris Airports Amid Planned Air Traffic Controller Strike
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Extreme Heat Wave Sweeps Across Europe, Hitting Record Temperatures
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Germany Votes to Suspend Family Reunification for Asylum Seekers
Budapest Pride Parade Draws 200,000 Participants Amid Government Ban
Southern Europe Experiences Extreme Heat
Xiaomi's YU7 SUV Launch Garners Record Pre-Orders Amid Market Challenges
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez's Lavish Wedding in Venice
Russia Launches Largest Air Assault on Ukraine Since Invasion
Massive Anti-Government Protests Erupt in Belgrade
Iran Executes Alleged Israeli Spies and Arrests Hundreds Amid Post-War Crackdown
Hungary's Prime Minister Criticizes NATO's Role in Ukraine
EU TO HUNGARY: LET THEM PRIDE OR PREP FOR SHADE. ORBÁN TO EU: STAY IN YOUR LANE AND FIX YOUR OWN MESS.
Hungarian Scientist to Conduct 30 Research Experiments on the International Space Station
NATO Members Agree to 5% Defense Spending Target by 2035
NATO Leaders Endorse Plan for Increased Defence Spending
U.S. Crude Oil Prices Drop Below $65 Amid Market Volatility
International Astronaut Team Launched to Space Station
Macron and Merz: Europe must arm itself in an unstable world
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Iran Intensifies Crackdown on Alleged Mossad Operatives After Sabotage Claims
Trump Praises Iran’s ‘Very Weak’ Response After U.S. Strikes and Presses Israel to Pursue Peace
Oil Prices Set to Surge After US Strikes Iran
BA and Singapore Airlines Cancel Dubai Flights Amid Middle East Tensions
Trump Faces Backlash from MAGA Base Over Iran Strikes
Meta Bets $14 B on Alexandr Wang to Drive AI Ambitions
FedEx Founder Fred Smith, ‘Heart and Soul’ of the Company, Dies at 80
Chinese Factories Shift Away from U.S. Amid Trump‑Era Tariffs
Pimco Seizes Opportunity in Japan’s Dislocated Bond Market
Labubu Doll Drives Pop Mart to Status as China’s Most Valuable Toy Maker
Global Coal Demand Defies Paris Accord Goals
United States Conducts Precision Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites
US strikes Iran nuclear sites, Trump says
×