Melania Trump denies Jeffrey Epstein ties, calls for public hearings

Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News on Apr 9, 2026

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First lady Melania Trump on Thursday denied all ties to Jeffrey Epstein in a surprise White House speech and called for congressional hearings featuring the notorious pedophile’s victims.

Without explaining why she was speaking out now, Trump insisted she barely knew Epstein and his convicted lieutenant Ghislaine Maxwell and denied that he introduced her to President Donald Trump.

“The lies linking me with the disgraceful Jeffrey Epstein need to end today,” she said in the speech, which was not announced in advance to the White House press corps.

“The individuals lying about me are devoid of ethical standards, humility and respect,” she added. “I reject their mean-spirited attempts to defame my reputation.”

The first lady, who rarely speaks in public, also called on Congress to hold a public hearing centered on survivors of Epstein’s crimes, with a chance to testify before lawmakers and have their stories entered into the congressional record.

The first lady said the victims of Epstein’s sex trafficking scheme should be provided with a platform to tell their stories to the American people.

“Each and every woman should have her day to tell her story in public if she wishes,” she said. “Then, and only then, we will have the truth.”

Although Melania Trump did not describe any break from her husband over Epstein, the speech appears to suggest she is taking a dramatically different position from his.

President Trump has repeatedly denounced the Epstein scandal as a hoax promoted by Democrats and other political enemies. He also called on people to stop talking about Epstein, a plea that Melania Trump apparently rejected.

The unexpected message from the first lady is particularly surprising because President Trump had mostly succeeded in recent months in moving past the controversy, which had caused major divisions in his MAGA base and roiled the nation’s political world.

President Trump did not immediately issue any statement about his wife’s speech.

Rep. Robert Garcia of California, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee that is investigating Epstein, said he agrees with the first lady and called on Republicans to schedule a hearing as soon as possible.

Melania Trump’s call for Congress to give a new forum to Epstein’s victims was particularly surprising given that it comes months after federal authorities released millions of pages of documents under the Epstein Files Transparency Act.

President Trump tenaciously fought against the law but eventually caved to overwhelming public pressure, dropped his opposition and signed it into the law.

Lawmakers complained that Trump’s Justice Department has dragged its heels on releasing the materials. Officials said more time was needed to review additional documents that were discovered and to ensure no sensitive information about victims was released.

Melania Trump mentioned her legal fights against journalist Michael Wolff and the Daily Beast over reports tying her to Epstein, but did not say if there was any new development.

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