As noted, WWE Smackdown Live star John Cena interviewed Bill Gates for the “Today” show, which aired earlier today, regarding Gates’ campaign to end polio. Gates’ Foundation has teamed with Rotary to pledge $450 million to end the disease, and below is a transcript of Cena speaking with Gates.
John: Polio has been eradicated in America for quite some time, why is it so important to get to this last point one percent?
Bill: Well as we succeed with this, not only will it help Polio, but it’ll be so uplifting, the ambition to say to people now “let’s go after Malaria” we really can’t do that until we get this one done. So, it’s one of the greatest projects I’ve ever had the chance to be a part of.
John: What personally will it mean to you when you get to zero? I’m not even going to say “if” I’m going to say when.
Bill: No I agree, I’m going to keep working on it, but because this one has been so tough, required so much persistence, there’s so much of a benefit to it, it will be emblematic that, hey, the world is getting better, when you cooperate, amazing things can happen.
John: With graduation season upon us, many of our hopefully future young world leaders receiving their diploma. If you were to give a message of “Bill Gates Key To Success” is, what would that be?
Bill: Well, I think that it’s picking something ambitious to do, that the decision you make in your twenties, that some of those are really going to set your path in a pretty permanent way. You know, we’re counting on those graduates of today to solve a lot of really big problems.
John: As a father, father’s day coming up, if we ask your three kids to tell you something about Bill Gates, what would they say?
Bill: Uh, you know, they’d say I read a lot, hopefully that’s a good example for them. They’ll say that I’m competitive at games, sometimes they want me to tone it down a little bit.
John: Do you have a favorite game you’re competitive at?
Bill: Oh, you know, all the card games. My kids always want to pick one that they have the best chance at. So I hope they’d they say that we’re a lucky family.
Never have the three tenets of John Cena meant more… #CloseTo0 #EndPolioNow @gatesfoundation @Rotary @BillGates pic.twitter.com/NRikijKcMK
— John Cena (@JohnCena) June 12, 2017
Minister Bibeau & @JohnCena = powerful forces joining together to #endpolio with partners @Rotary@WHO@UNICEFpolio@GatesFoundationpic.twitter.com/ktBL99QalP
— Development Canada (@CanadaDev) June 12, 2017
Thanks to WZ reader Carmen Patterson, @JohnCenaCrews, for contributing to the above article.
Nick was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, and lived there until the age of 18, when he decided to pack his flack jacket and move to New York City.
