Rielle Hunter Apologizes for John Edwards Affair: 'I Behaved Badly'

John Edwards' former mistress Rielle Hunter apologized to the politician's late wife Elizabeth in a Huffington Post column on Tuesday… but is it too little too late?

Hunter, who has a 5-year-old daughter named Quinn with Edwards, admitted, “I behaved badly. That may seem obvious to you but it's taken me a long time to admit that, even to myself.”

She continued, “I am very sorry for my wrong, selfish behavior… I hurt Elizabeth and her kids. I hurt her family. I hurt John's family. I hurt people that knew Elizabeth… Unfortunately, I was not thinking about anyone but myself. I was selfish.” Elizabeth Edwards died December 7, 2010.

Hunter, who does not address her current relationship with John in the column, points to her parents as an excuse for her behavior.

“I am a product of infidelity. Both of my parents cheated on each other, and as a kid it damaged me. I then grew up, fell in love with a married man, and caused even more damage… It is a chain of pain. One I do not wish to pass on to my own daughter.”

As part of the healing process, Rielle went through her memoir, “What Really Happened: John Edwards, Our Daughter and Me” and annotated all of her regrets and mistakes.