Melania Trump reads a statement at the White House denying a relationship with Jeffrey Epstein
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First lady Melania Trump denies having a relationship with Jeffrey Epstein and knowledge of his crimes, saying Thursday that “the news is completely false” and calling online allegations that he was somehow involved in the billionaire’s sexual abuse of young girls and his dealings with rich and powerful people “spread by me.”
“The lies linking me to the disgraceful Jeffrey Epstein must end today,” Trump said.
“People who lie about me do not have moral standards, humility and respect. I do not oppose their ignorance, but rather I reject their attempts to insult my reputation.”
Reading a rare statement from the White House, he denied any association with Epstein and said, “My lawyers and I have successfully fought these baseless and baseless lies.”
The first lady also asked Congress to hold public hearings focused on survivors of Epstein’s crimes, with the opportunity to testify before lawmakers and have their stories included in the congressional record.
“Every woman should have her day to discuss her story in public if she wants to,” he said. “Then, and only then, will we have the truth.”
It brings Epstein back into the news cycle
His out-of-the-blue message caught the White House — and indeed, the entire Washington political world — by surprise. It wasn’t until her husband, US President Donald Trump, and his administration finally appeared to have succeeded in overcoming the Epstein controversy, which had been in the open for months.
The case had begun to be overshadowed by the Iran war and other major issues – but the first lady’s comments could bring it back into politics.
Trump said he was not friends with Epstein or his ex-girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell, but had been in overlapping public places in New York and Florida. He described the email response he sent to Maxwell as “just letters” without elaborating.
“My polite response to his email meant nothing,” she said.
His requests to return the matter to Congress are also surprising because they came after authorities released millions of pages of documents under the Epstein Files Transparency Act, a law enacted after months of public and political pressure to require the government to open its files on the late financier and his ex-girlfriend, Maxwell.
Complaints about documents issued so far
Lawmakers complained when the US Justice Department made a limited release last month, but officials said more time was needed to review additional documents found and ensure no sensitive information about victims was released.
Documents confirm that Jeffrey Epstein traveled to Vancouver in 2014, despite being convicted in 2008 of two counts of prostitution, including soliciting the prostitution of a minor. The conviction should have disqualified him. Federal officials have not responded.
Among the documents released by the Justice Department was a brief email from 2002 in which the sender and recipient were blacked out. It starts with, “Dear G!” then ends with “Love, Melania,” and compliments the recipient with a magazine article that mentions “JE.”
“I know you are busy flying all over the world,” he said. “How was Palm Beach? I can’t wait to come down. Call me when you get back to NY.”
The first lady spoke about her husband several times in her statement. She said Epstein did not introduce her to Trump, clarifying that she met her husband at an event in New York City in 1998.
“My first encounter with Epstein was in 2000, at an event I attended together with Donald,” he said. “At the time, I had never met Epstein and had no knowledge of his criminal activities.”
Rep. Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee investigating Epstein, said on social media that he agreed with the first lady’s calls for a congressional hearing. He asked the Republican chairman of the committee, Rep. James Comer, to schedule a public hearing “immediately.”
