Bill and Melinda Gates have taken a stand in the gun control debate, pushing for more background checks. The couple have donated $1 million to a Washington state campaign that has already raised $6 million.
According to the The Associated Press, the donation was actually made on Friday, but not made public until yesterday, since it showed up on the Washington Public Disclosure Commission site.
The former Microsoft chief donated to Initiative 594, which is hoping to require background checks on all gun sales within the state. It would also require background checks for gun transfers and covers gun show and private sales. The only exceptions would include family gifts or antiques.
The initiative "will be an effective and balanced approach to improving gun safety in our state by closing existing loopholes for background checks,” the couple said in a statement.
Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen also donated $500,000 to the initiative. Venture capitalist Nick Hanauer has donated $1.4 million in total. Steve Ballmer, the former Microsoft CEO and now owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, added $580,000.
Gates also recently took part in the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge after Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg put him up to it. He did it in the geekiest way possible, designing a structure to dump a bucket of water on himself.
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