Melania Trump has made a bombshell announcement, demanding that “lies” being spread about her in connection with Jeffrey Epstein must end.
She also called on Congress to allow open testimony from the Epstein victims, saying, “Now is the time to act.”
“I have never had any knowledge of Epstein’s abuse of his victims. I was never involved in any capacity—I was not a participant, was never on Epstein’s plane, and never visited his private island," she told reporters at the White House.
“I have never been legally accused or convicted of a crime in connection with Epstein’s sex trafficking, abuse of minors, and other repulsive behavior.
“The false smears about me from mean-spirited and politically motivated individuals and entities looking to cause damage to my good name to gain financially and climb politically must stop.”
It is not clear what prompted the first lady to make her statement at this time, or if she was pre-empting a potential controversy involving the now deceased sex offender.
The media were alerted on Wednesday that she would be making remarks today, but no details were provided by her office.
Reading from a prepared statement, Melania told reporters that she went to the same parties as Epstein “from time to time, since overlapping in social circles is common.”
However, she never had a relationship with the convicted sex offender or his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell, she said.
This was despite a gushing email exchange between Melania and Maxwell being included in a recent dump of Epstein files.
In it, Melania praised a New York magazine article about Epstein and complimented the socialite now serving 20 years in prison for sex trafficking.
“Dear G! How are you?” it starts. “Nice story about JE in NY mag. You look great in the picture.”
But the first lady insisted on Thursday that this email exchange could “not be categorized as anything but a casual response.”
She also made clear that Epstein did not introduce her to Donald Trump, contrary to past claims.
“I met my husband, by chance, at a New York Party in 1998,” she said. “This initial encounter with my husband is documented in detail in my book, MELANIA."
Her bombshell comments—particularly urging Congress to hear the testimony of victims—are a marked shift from the president, who has been at pains to distance himself from the Epstein files and has long branded the firestorm surrounding it a “Democratic hoax.”
She did not, however, call on the Department of Justice to release the remaining Epstein files. About three million documents, largely redacted, have been released so far, but millions more remain undisclosed.
Some Democrats were not convinced.
“If the First Lady wants to clear her name, she should come before the Oversight Committee and testify under oath,” said Rep. Suhas Subramanyam, who sits on the committee.
“Otherwise, this is just a shameless book promotion.”
But the First Lady told reporters: “Now is the time for Congress to act.
“Epstein was not alone. Several prominent male executives resigned from their powerful positions after this matter became widely politicized. Of course, this doesn’t amount to guilt, but we still must work openly and transparently to uncover the truth.”
In her brief comments, the first lady also referred to “numerous images of Epstein and me” that had been circulating on social media, but it was not clear whether these were new or previously published.
She also took aim at the media, noting that she and her lawyers had fought “unfounded and baseless lies” in the past and “will continue to maintain my sound reputation without hesitation.”
“To date, several individuals and companies have been legally obligated to publicly apologize and retract their lies about me, such as The Daily Beast, James Carville, and HarperCollins UK,” she added.
Author Michael Wolff, from the Daily Beast’s podcast Inside Trump’s Head, is in turn suing Melania Trump, accusing her of trying to muzzle him by threatening him with a $1 billion lawsuit.
The first lady ended her statement in support of Epstein’s victims.
“I call on Congress to provide the women who have been victimized by Epstein with a public hearing specifically centered around the survivors,” she said.
“Give these victims their opportunity to testify under oath in front of Congress, with the power of sworn testimony. Each and every woman should have her day to tell her story in public, if she wishes, and then her testimony should be permanently entered into the Congressional Record. Then, and only then, will we have the truth.”
