By Holly Rasmussen & The Ashley
Critics have been calling Josh Duggar a hypocrite ever since news of his sex abuse scandal leaked back in May, and today, Josh actually agreed with them.
The 19 Kids and Counting star had been preaching “family values” on his family’s reality show and while working for the Family Research Council, despite having had molested five young girls (including four of his sisters) during his teen years.
Even in adulthood, though, Josh certainly wasn’t adhering to the wholesome family-centered lifestyle that he was preaching. Yesterday, Gawker released a bombshell report that stated that Josh’s name and information had been found on the just-leaked list of customers of the “have an affair” website, AshleyMadison.com.
Yes, you heard that right. During the time that Ol’ Joshy was in D.C. preaching for “family values” and lobbying against same sex marriage, he was allegedly keeping an account on a website that was created to help people cheat on their spouses.
Today, Josh and his family confirmed that the reports were, indeed, true and that he did have an affair during his marriage to current wife Anna Duggar.
“I have been the biggest hypocrite ever,” Josh said in a statement released on the family’s website. (UPDATE: The family took down the statement originally posted this morning with the text featured below and replaced it with the text found in the link. They conveniently edited out any mention of Josh’s addiction to p0rn!)
“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.
“I am so ashamed of the double life that I have been living and am grieved for the hurt, pain and disgrace my sin has caused my wife and family, and most of all Jesus and all those who profess faith in Him.”
Josh’s parents, Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar, also released a statement today in which they claimed they had no idea that their son was a p0rno-crazed cheater.
“When we learned of this late last night our hearts were broken,” the Duggars stated. “As we continue to place our trust in God we ask for your prayers for Josh, Anna, our grandchildren and our entire family.
Josh discussed in his statement how he has yet again brought shame to the Duggars.
“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,” he wrote. “The last few years, while publicly stating I was fighting against immorality in our country, I was hiding my own personal failings. As I am learning the hard way, we have the freedom to choose to our actions, but we do not get to choose our consequences. I deeply regret all hurt I have caused so many by being such a bad example.
“I humbly ask for your forgiveness. Please pray for my precious wife Anna and our family during this time.”
After his sex abuse scandal broke in May, Josh made public statements that he has since turned his life around and is a devoted family man, but that was apparently a lie. While Josh was living in Washington, D.C. with his wife and three children and working for the Family Research Council, he was also on AshleyMadison.com trying to have an affair.
Josh’s profile stated that he was looking for one-night stands, experimentation and sex talk, among other things. He also listed short hair casual jeans/t-shirt type as his turn-ons. Apparently those frumpy skirts his wife wears weren’t doing it for him.
Gawker reported that someone using a credit card belonging to a Joshua J. Duggar, with a billing address that matches the home in Fayetteville, Arkansas owned by his grandmother, (that’s the house we saw his wife give birth in on T.V.) paid a total of $986.76 for two different monthly Ashley Madison subscriptions from February of 2013 until May of 2015. They are also reporting that in July of 2014, Josh started a second account that was linked to his home in Oxon Hill, Maryland.
Josh also allegedly paid a fee of $250 that appears to have gone toward the purchase of an “affair guarantee,” according to Gawker. Customers who buy 1,000 credits for $250 on the site are given a guarantee that they’ll have an affair within three months or they’ll get their money back.
But wait– there’s more!
Gawker is also reporting that Josh also had a profile on the dating site OKCupid, which was found using the information that was leaked from Ashley Madison. An account by the name of “joesmithsonnwa” has the same unique email handle as Josh’s Ashley Madison account.
While he used a photo of a random guy on his profile, all of his other identifying info matches to Josh’s life: he doesn’t drink, doesn’t do drugs, is Christian, involved in politics and enjoys “a few reality shows.” He does, however, list himself as “single” and looking for casual sex.
Josh’s wife, Anna, has yet to speak out about the affair(s). After his sex abuse scandal broke in May, she released a statement about how she’s forgiven her husband, etc. This time, however, she has been radio silent on the Duggar website and her social media accounts.
The couple welcomed their fourth child, Meredith, a month ago.
The Ashley will update this story when more info becomes available.
(Photos: TLC, Fox News, UPN)
36 Responses
What’s sad is they are raised to think sexual desires are “bad” & “evil” they go from holding hands & side hugs straight into sex. I’m not saying that they should be allowed to bang anything & everything but sex is so taboo to them. Instead of teaching them how awful & shameful it is the parents should be having open dialogue in private with the kids when they have questions.
I grew up in a Baptist household, not nearly as strict as the Duggars but there was really no talk of sex in my house, just that I shouldn’t have it. I ended up becoming slightly rebellious in my teenage years & promiscous. I think if I felt like I could have open dialogue with my Mom about it maybe things would have been different for me. I by no means blame anyone but myself for my wild streak but I think if I had that outlet things may have played out differently for myself.
Sadly Anna will likely never leave Josh. Even if it comes out that he has another child out there as a product of one of his affairs. She will also likely be blamed for him cheating, saying she didn’t make herself available to him when he wanted her. I remember Michelle saying something along the lines of giving in to Jim Bob even when she didn’t want to because that’s what a good wife does.
I agree. I won’t say he has no fault in all of this because he definitely does. I do think that the fact that his parents held his leash so tight that it did have an adverse affect on him. Maybe going to regular school with non related boys and girls or having sex Ed or being allowed to explore relationships with boundaries may have changed the course of his life. Who knows? Personally I had a friend who was always pushed to be an athlete & in elementary & high school was a great one. Parents were so strict with his diet and he could never go out, only to practice & games. He got a college scholarship to play sports at a college out of state. Well left to his own devices he went crazy with the junk food, got obese and turned to drugs. He ended up overdosing. Long winded way to pose the question nature vs nurture. If you nurture to hard, can you mess up nature?
I would get that but we haven’t heard of any of the other Duggar kids involved in scandals. .just him. I think he’s got other issues in his head.
He knows Anna is screwed. These girls make nothing of themselves and dedicate themselves to their husbands. Wait until the girl he had the affair is revealed. SHE will find a way to sue him or press some sort of chardppges against him, and he will fall deeper down the rabbit hole. I hope all the weird behavior, beyond odd rules for dating and media restrictions was worth this Jim Bob and submissive sex slave Michele. Failure as parents is an understatement
LOL submissive sex slave Michele HAHA
What is sad is he grew up repressed and when he molested his sisters his parents did not get him proper counseling. Studies show pyshological interventions do help young offenders. His parents failed him and their daughters, and now he is failing another generation of children. I don’t think there is anything wrong with turning to your faith for guidance, but its way past time for him to see a mental health professional as well.
Run Anna, RUUUUUN!
What a dirtbag. I’m sure he has assholes still defending him.
Well, this guy is obviously a pervert if he molested his sisters so this doesn’t surprise me at all. Next month we’ll probably see his mugshot from getting arrested for picking up a hooker.
“And most of all jesus” is this guy for real?!!? He was cheating on his wife for 2 years! He should be concerned about the hurt and pain he has caused his wife above all else.
“and all those who profess faith in Him.” So Jesus and all christians before his wife. Ridiculous. I just tried the link to his statement and it is GONE!
Yeah, that part caught my eye too. These people are beyond brainwashed.
Huh. Didn’t he feel like he was letting Jesus down? Or was he only letting him down now that he’s been caught?
I’ve been waiting for The Ashley to comment on this! I’m not surprised, at all, but I also can’t say I saw this twist coming. I really feel for Anna though and hope she leaves him. He has issues that need professional help and she needs to shelter those kids until he’s better. I wonder if JimBob had an account too, or what other skeletons are going to get leaked. I knew this family would eventually fall, but they’re falling faster than I expected!
I knew it was just a matter of time before an affair was revealed. There is no way that he would be living a normal adult life with his past actions and no counseling or punishments. I seriously doubt that this will be the last skeleton to fall out of his closet.
Agreed. Although honestly, if I were a betting woman I would have placed money on another abuse scandal before an adult affair. Not that that couldn’t happen still…sadly 🙁
If his wife doesn’t leave him after this then shes the weakest woman ever. I understand they have all those kids together, but SHEESH! How much more crap can one person willingly take? She already let him get away with inapproriately touching his sisters…If she lets him get away with this then shes super dumb. He’s just gonna cheat again, and again and again. He’s a pervert. Thats what perverts do. And addicted to porn my ass. PFFT! No, you’re just nasty. Look, everyone deserves a second chance, but this guy has used up his second chance and ROYALLY blew it…and its time for her to get out of this marriage! She took those vows seriously, but CLEARLY he didnt. She doesn’t deserve this crap. But if she stays thats on her, and the next betrayal she wont be getting any of my sympathy.
I agree, but sadly she’s so brainwashed and indoctrinated I don’t know what she will do. I’m not even sure I could blame her if she doesn’t leave and she literally wouldn’t know any better. I really hope she does leave and I hope she becomes more worldly after all of this. Yikes, yikes, yikes.
Is theirs a covenant marriage? She may not be allowed to leave within the confines of her cult.. I mean, religion.
One exception to this is “unrepentant adulterers” but I’m sure they will classify Josh as repentant.
I am so happy to see this family exposed.
You are correct…it is a covenant marriage. Which means, no…she can’t leave.
One of the saddest things is that a source told People she’ll probably try to find a way to blame herself – if she had noticed Josh was stressed or something like that. It looks like at least the AM stuff started when she was in her late pregnancy with her 3rd child, which makes it even more unfair to her if she does blame herself.
I’m so disgusted with the entire family! Thank God the show got cancelled.
How awful for Anna…he continues to publically humiliate her. Shame on him.
I feel so bad for Anna. Wow.
This is amazing. (Although devastating for those involved; I can’t even bring myself to imagine what it must be like for Anna right now. Just having a one-month-old is enough for anyone.) I think my favorite part just might be his ‘type’ being short-haired, jeans-wearing, immodestly dressed heathens.
Sounds like he likes the boyish type. Maybe he’s gay?
That’s what stood out to me the most bc this family can’t really shock me at this point…but that part almost did haha. I’m glad The Ashley caught it too! It’s like he went out of his way to diss his own cult….adultery wasn’t enough, it had to be with jeans wearing ladies!
I think the tragedy is that Anna (and America) is the fool. Now she has four kids, no skills and the worst part is she probably will never leave Josh. She’ll some how “forgive” him and praise God.
She’ll probably be “forced” to stay with Josh, you know? She now has 4 kids and no skills for a job. Hell, just the cost of daycare alone would kill her. Josh isn’t working right now either, so she really all she has to rely on is the Duggars’ TV money, or what’s left of it.
I’m surprised her crazy in law’s didn’t blame her for him straying. Something along the lines of if she had made herself available to him, he wouldn’t be having these issues. Never mind the fact that Jim Boob never bothered to get him legitimate help after he molested his sisters. They don’t seem to understand that Josh made his own choices and he needs to live with the consequences of those choices. I feel sorry for Anna. Finding out your husband has cheated on you after giving birth to his child is terrible.
This guy needs More than Jesus..he needs psychological Help! He’s a disgusting sex addict! Anna needs to Run,not walk ,back to Florida with her family!
The statement appears to have already been removed from their website…what’s the deal with that?
They probably commented before consulting their spin doctor. My guess is they will try and say their site was hacked *LOL*.
It is linked on their FB page. I will now hang my head in shame for checking it. Lol!