During an extraordinary press conference, First Lady Melania Trump emphatically denied any connection to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and demanded apologies from publishers who made this claim.
“I’ve never been friends with Epstein,” she said during a brief televised address from the White House on Thursday afternoon.
She condemned “unfounded and baseless lies” and “false smears” against her, calling out a few publishers by name, including The Daily Beast and Harper Collins UK.
The Slovenian-born former model went on to say that she met Epstein as a result of “overlapping in social circles” in 2000 and that she only kept a “casual correspondence” with Ghislaine Maxwell.
“I call on Congress to provide the women who have been victimized by Epstein with a public hearing specifically centered around the survivors,” she added.
Multiple lawmakers on the House Oversight Committee, which is investigating Epstein, echoed her calls for a public hearing.
Her remarks surprised many observers, partly because public attention on the Epstein scandal had subsided amid the ongoing war in Iran.
House Democrat backs first lady’s call for a public hearing for Epstein survivors
Rep. Robert Garcia, a California Democrat, and the ranking member of the House Oversight Committee, echoed the first lady’s call for a public hearing for the victims of Jeffrey Epstein.
“We agree with First Lady Melania Trump’s call for a public hearing with the survivors of Jeffrey Epstein,” he wrote on X. “We encourage Chairman Comer to respond to the First Lady’s request and schedule a public hearing immediately.”
Brendan Rascius9 April 2026 20:21
Trump was aware his wife planned to make a statement: report
President Donald Trump was aware that his wife was planning to deliver her statement about Epstein, a spokesperson for the first lady told The New York Times.
It’s not clear why she chose to speak about the matter now.
Brendan Rascius9 April 2026 20:17
Read some of the key quotes from Melania Trump’s address
Read some of the key quotes from the first lady’s address:
- “I’ve never been friends with Epstein. Donald and I were invited to the same parties as Epstein from time to time since overlapping in social circles is common in New York City and Palm Beach.”
- “The first time I crossed paths with Epstein was in the year 2000 at an event Donald and I attended together. At the time, I had never met Epstein and had no knowledge of his criminal undertaking.”
- “Epstein did not introduce me to Donald Trump. I met my husband by chance at a New York City party in 1998.”
- “My email reply to Maxwell cannot be categorized as anything more than casual correspondence. My polite reply to her email doesn’t amount to anything more than a trivial note.”
Brendan Rascius9 April 2026 20:07
Melania Trump uses White House podium to deny any connection to Epstein
First Lady Melania Trump has denied any connection to Jeffrey Epstein or knowledge of his abuse in an address at the White House.
The first lady condemned “unfounded and baseless lies” and “false smears” against her from “politically motivated individuals and entities” who have sought to “gain financially and climb politically.”
Such statements “must stop,” she said.
Her brief but remarkable statement from inside the White House follows growing scrutiny into the notorious sex offender and his relationships to powerful and well-connected figures, including President Donald Trump.
Brendan Rascius9 April 2026 19:55
