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Whoa, we finally know what led Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver to divorce…Arnold had a love child with a household staff member over 10 years ago and kept it secret until he was out of office. What a jerk! You what else I find appalling that the worker continued to work for them for 10 more years until this January when she retired…also a jerk! She should have quit a long time ago!
According to the LA Times,
Former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and his wife, Maria Shriver, separated after she learned he had fathered a child more than a decade ago — before his first run for office — with a longtime member of their household staff.
Shriver moved out of the family’s Brentwood mansion earlier this year, after Schwarzenegger acknowledged the paternity. The staff member worked for the family for 20 years, retiring in January.
“After leaving the governor’s office I told my wife about this event, which occurred over a decade ago,” Schwarzenegger said Monday night in a statement issued to The Times in response to questions. “I understand and deserve the feelings of anger and disappointment among my friends and family. There are no excuses and I take full responsibility for the hurt I have caused. I have apologized to Maria, my children and my family. I am truly sorry.
Photos: A political marriage with star power
“I ask that the media respect my wife and children through this extremely difficult time,” the statement concluded. “While I deserve your attention and criticism, my family does not. ”
A spokesman for the former first lady said she had no comment.
Since leaving office, Schwarzenegger has maintained a high public profile, meeting with world dignitaries, attending a White House summit on immigration and working to revive his movie career.
To protect their privacy, The Times is not publishing the former staffer’s name nor that of her child. In an interview Monday before Schwarzenegger issued his statement, the former staffer said another man — her then-husband — was the child’s father.
She said she voluntarily left her position with the couple earlier this year after reaching a longstanding goal of working for them for two decades. “I wanted to achieve my 20 years, then I asked to retire,” she said, adding she received a severance payment and “left on good terms with them.”
Later Monday, The Times informed the woman of the governor’s statement and she declined to comment further.
Schwarzenegger took financial responsibility for the child from the start and continued to provide support, according to a source who declined to be identified because of the former governor’s request for privacy.
Photo from PR Photos
