First lady Melania Trump has emphatically denied any connection to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and called for Congress to invite survivors to give testimony during a Thursday address.
In response, more than a dozen Epstein survivors said in a joint letter they felt the first lady was “shifting the burden” onto them as they have already told their stories. They further called for the full release of the remaining Epstein files.
President Donald Trump reportedly said he did not know Melania would be speaking about Epstein.
“I’ve never been friends with Epstein,” she said from the White House. “I have never had any knowledge of Epstein’s abuse of his victims.”
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.”
She said she met Epstein as a result of “overlapping in social circles” and only kept a “casual correspondence” with Ghislaine Maxwell.
Republicans and Democrats on the House Oversight Committee investigating Epstein echoed her calls for a public hearing.
The first lady’s remarks surprised many, partly because attention on the Epstein files scandal had subsided amid the ongoing war in Iran.
