The latest batch of Epstein documents name-dropped some of the world’s most infamous villains.
It also mentioned noted philanthropist Bill Gates.
His ex-wife, Melinda French Gates, is responding.
She feels profound pain — for the alleged betrayal of their marriage and of her, but also for the many Epstein victims.
‘Some very, very painful times in my marriage’
On Tuesday, February 3, French Gates sat down with NPR’s Wild Card podcast.
She addressed multiple topics with host Rachel Martin, but ultimately had to address the elephant in the room.
Martin even phrased it that way when she brought up French Gates’ ex-husband, Bill Gates, and the latest release of Epstein documents.
The documents contain allegations that her ex engaged in multiple extramarital affairs and contracted an STI — and sought medication, and made plans to secretly administer the treatment without French Gates’ knowledge.
Obviously, the documents also contain many horrific accounts of crimes committed by rich and powerful men against women and girls. But these communications featuring her ex of 27 years are obviously very personal.
French Gates acknowledged that the reporting reminded her of low moments from her erstwhile marriage.
She admitted that she feels “so happy to be away from all the muck that was there.”
She expressed: “It’s personally hard whenever those details come up, right? Because it brings back memories of some very, very painful times in my marriage.”
French Gates affirmed: “I have moved on from that. I purposely pushed it away and I moved on.”
However, she remains very much aware that, her ex-husband’s alleged affairs with Russian women aside, she is not the center of this story.
‘I hope there’s some justice’
“I’m able to take my own sadness and look at those young girls and say, ‘My God, how did that happen to those girls?’” French Gates remarked, centering the conversation upon the primary victims.
She reflected upon how she can so easily remember being the ages of these girls.
“I had to leave my marriage. I wanted to leave my marriage,” she acknowledged. “At least for me, I’ve been able to move on in life.”
French Gates then affirmed: “And I hope there’s some justice for those now-women.”
That would be nice. They certainly deserve justice.
However, history tends to indicate that evil, powerful men can do almost anything and get away with it.
And Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign seems to have primarily been motivated by his desire to avoid prison.
When it comes to the allegations from these countless women, French Gates expressed feelings of “unbelievable sadness.”
She added: “Whatever questions remain there… are for those people and for my ex-husband, they need to answer to those things, not me.”
That is certainly true. Women are not responsible for the alleged crimes of their husbands, let alone their ex-husbands.
Epstein is, famously, not around to offer clarity on the powerful men implicated in his crimes
For what it’s worth, a spokesperson for Bill Gates has claimed that the allegations against the man are “completely false.”
Rather, the spokesperson called the mentions of Gates within the documents proof that Jeffrey Epstein was plotting “to entrap and defame” wealthy, famous acquaintances.
It is of course possible that one of the world’s most infamous dead pedophiles, who was apparently plotting the downfall of civilization much as it seems to be playing out, was also a liar.
We do not know if he was lying or telling the truth or somewhere in between in these documents.
However, we can all understand how French Gates must be feeling in this moment. We can also hope for justice for all of the Epstein victims, alive or dead.