Bunny Mellon breaks her silence on John Edwards, insists they were ‘great friends’

A reclusive banking heiress who gave $725,000 to John Edwards that was used to conceal his affair with a former campaign aide is finally speaking out about the scandal.

Rachel "Bunny" Mellon, a 100-year-old billionaire who is among the richest people in America, has long insisted through her attorneys that she had no idea where the money she gave Edwards was going.

But in an interview with Newsweek's Meryl Gordon, Mellon gushes about Edwards and hints she knew he was having marital problems with his wife, Elizabeth, who died of cancer last year.

"You know that John had a hard time with Elizabeth," she tells the magazine in her first interview in nearly 25 years.

Her lawyer, Alex Forger, confirms his client wasn't a fan of Elizabeth Edwards and was sympathetic toward the former presidential hopeful. "She was not enamored of his wife and didn't want his wife to know that he was getting money," he says.

Mellon's motivations in giving Edwards cash is at the center of federal charges against the former Democratic presidential hopeful.

Edwards was indicted in June on felony charges of accepting more than $925,000 in what federal prosecutors allege were illegal campaign contributions from Mellon and another longtime political benefactor during his 2008 campaign. The cash was used to hide Edwards' affair with Rielle Hunter, a former campaign videographer who later gave birth to his child.

The former Democratic presidential hopeful has pled not guilty, insisting the funds he received from Mellon and Fred Baron were personal gifts meant to help hide his affair from his wife. But prosecutors say the cash should be considered a campaign contribution since it was also aimed at protecting Edwards' image at the height of his White House bid.

In June, prosecutors blocked Edwards from talking to Mellon after it was revealed he hit her up for more cash in the weeks leading up to his indictment. Her family tells Newsweek they are angry that he's tarnished her legacy and says he is "taking advantage" of her.

But Mellon, who has outlived many of her closest friends, including Jackie Kennedy, still adores Edwards, in spite of the scandal--an affection her grandson describes as a "crush."

"He would have been a great president," Mellon tells Newsweek. "He and I were great friends. Every time he'd go on a debate against Hillary (Clinton), he'd call and we'd talk… I was so surprised when this thing came up."