Donald Trump is reported to have said he had no warning that Melania was about to go on camera to deny links to Jeffrey Epstein — telling a reporter he « didn’t know anything about » the First Lady’s statement before it aired.
Trump reportedly made the admission to MS Now before abruptly ending the call, adding only that « she didn’t know [Epstein] » before hanging up.
The First Lady had moments earlier delivered an unannounced address from the Cross Hall of the White House, flatly denying she had ever been a victim of the disgraced financier or that he had played any role in introducing her to her future husband.
« I am not Epstein’s victim, » she said. « Epstein did not introduce me to Donald Trump. I met my husband by chance at a New York City party in 1998. »
The statement caught Washington off guard. No new reporting or revelations linking Melania to Epstein had emerged in the days before the address, leaving the timing unexplained.
She described her contact with Epstein as incidental — confined to the social world she and Trump inhabited across New York and Florida in the early 2000s, territory she said the financier also moved in. She placed their first meeting in 2000, well before his behaviour became a matter of public record in 2005. An email linking her to Ghislaine Maxwell had surfaced in Justice Department files; Melania denied it reflected any meaningful connection to the British socialite.
Throughout the address she kept her eyes on her notes, her composure visibly strained. When she finished speaking she stepped back from the podium immediately, leaving no opportunity for questions.
Fake images
Melania told those assembled that doctored photographs and invented claims tying her to Epstein had been circulating online for years, and called on the public to approach such content with caution.
« These images and stories are completely false. I’m not a witness or unnamed witness in connection with any of Epstein’s crimes, » she said.
« 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. »
She said her legal team had successfully challenged a series of such claims and would continue to do so.
Call for hearings
The most unexpected element of the address came when Melania turned her attention to Epstein’s accusers, demanding that Congress create a formal space for survivors to be heard.
« 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.
She pointed out that Epstein operated with the assistance of others, and that the fallout had claimed the careers of multiple senior figures in business and public life. Their departures did not constitute proof of wrongdoing, she said — but the full picture, she argued, had yet to emerge.
« We still must work openly and transparently to uncover the truth, » she said.
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