Josh Duggar Admits He Cheated On His Wife, Says He’s “The Biggest Hypocrite Ever”

Josh Duggar released a statement on Thursday confirming that he cheated on his wife, calling himself “the biggest hypocrite ever.”

Josh Duggar Admits He’s “The Biggest Hypocrite Ever”

Duggar, a conservative family values advocate and former 19 Kids and Counting star, admitted that he had cheated on his wife of seven years, Anna Duggar, following the revelation that he had two separate paid Ashley Madison accounts — with costs totaling almost $1,000 including one $250 “affair guarantee.” In his statement, Duggar did not confirm or deny that he was the owner of these accounts with the website made to allow men and women to cheat on their spouses, but he was clear in his admission that he had cheated.

“I have been the biggest hypocrite ever. While espousing faith and family values, I have secretly over the last several years been viewing pornography on the internet and this became a secret addiction and I became unfaithful to my wife,” Duggar said in his original statement.

Curiously, Duggar later edited the statement, posted on the official Duggar Family website, to exclude any mention of pornography or a supposed porn addiction.

Duggar added that he was “so ashamed of the double life that I have been living” and offered a public apology to his wife and family. “I brought hurt and a reproach to my family, close friends and the fans of our show with my actions that happened when I was 14-15 years old, and now I have re-broken their trust,” Duggar said, referencing the recent molestation scandal that led to the cancelling of 19 Kids and Counting.

Duggar seemed completely aware of the public fallout from this new scandal. Duggar was cheating on his wife at the same time as he was campaigning around the country to ban gay marriage, and it’s unlikely he will be able to return to the political sphere. “The last few years, while publicly stating I was fighting against immorality in our country, I was hiding my own personal failings,” he said.

Will Anna Duggar Seek Divorce?

Because of the Duggars’ strict religious beliefs, most media outlets are speculating that it is highly unlikely Duggar and his wife will seek a divorce. In fact, one source alleged that Anna will likely try to “absorb some of the blame.” Josh and Anna Duggar share four children: Mackynzie, 5, Michael, 4, Marcus, 2, and Meredith Grace, 1 month.

“Maybe not publicly, ever, but privately, there will be some suggestion of whether or not she should have been more aware of the pressures Josh was under, of the issues he was facing, and how she could have better counseled him or helped him,” the source told People.