First lady Melania Trump has emphatically denied any connection to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and called on Congress to invite survivors to give testimony during a surprise televised address from the White House.
“I’ve never been friends with Epstein,” she said. “I have never had any knowledge of Epstein’s abuse of his victims.”
She went on to condemn what she called “unfounded and baseless lies” and “false smears” against her from “politically-motivated individuals and entities,” who have sought to “gain financially and climb politically.”
The first lady said she met Epstein as a result of “overlapping in social circles” and only kept up a “casual correspondence” with Ghislaine Maxwell.
In response, more than a dozen survivors accused her of “shifting the burden” onto them and again called on the Department of Justice to release the remaining Epstein files.
President Donald Trump subsequently told a reporter he had not known in advance what his wife Melania would be speaking about while members the House Oversight Committee investigating Epstein echoed her calls for a public hearing.
The first lady’s remarks surprised many, not least because focus on the scandal has largely subsided amid the ongoing war in Iran.
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Analysis: What could have prompted Melania Trump’s sudden and unexpected statement on Epstein?
Just when you thought Donald Trump had bombed enough of the Middle East to blow the Epstein files right out of public memory, his wife came out with a statement this afternoon. And what a statement it was.
With no explanatory preamble, Melania Trump spoke from the White House podium about how she is “not Epstein’s victim,” was not introduced to her husband by Epstein or Ghislaine Maxwell, and about how she “never visited his private island.”
“I was never involved in any capacity,” she added. “I was not a participant.”
Holly Baxter reports.
What could have prompted Melania Trump’s sudden and unexpected statement on Epstein?
In a rare and extraordinary speech from the White House, the First Lady denied being Epstein’s friend or victim. The timing couldn’t have been worse for her husband — and the reasoning couldn’t have been more opaque, reports Holly BaxterGraig Graziosi10 April 2026 09:30
ICYMI: Justice Department says Pam Bondi won’t appear at Epstein hearing after Trump fired her
FromThe Independent’s Alex Woodward:
Now-former Attorney General Pam Bondi will not comply with a subpoena for her testimony to members of Congress about Department of Justice investigations into Jeffrey Epstein after Donald Trump removed her from office last week.
In a letter to the House Oversight Committee, the Justice Department said Bondi will not appear for her previously scheduled deposition despite a subpoena for her testimony about the federal government’s handling of the cases against the late sex offender.
“The Department of Justice has stated Pam Bondi will not appear on April 14 for a deposition since she is no longer Attorney General and was subpoenaed in her capacity as Attorney General,” a committee spokesperson told The Independent. “The Committee will contact Pam Bondi’s personal counsel to discuss next steps regarding scheduling her deposition.”
READ MORE:
DOJ says Pam Bondi won’t appear at Epstein hearing after Trump fired her
Ousted attorney general won’t comply with congressional subpoena because she is no longer in office, DOJ saysGraig Graziosi10 April 2026 09:00
House Oversight Democrat calls for first lady to testify before Congress
Democratic Congressman Suhas Subramanyam, a member of the House Oversight Committee, said on Thursday that First Lady Melania Trump should testify before Congress if she wants to clear up her relationship with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.
“Honestly, if she want’s to clear her name, she should come testify before a committee herself, under oath,” Subramanyam told CNN on Thursday evening.
He said that, following the first lady’s remarks, it’s within reason for Congress to ask for her to testify under oath.
The congressman also said he thinks the first lady may be underestimating the optics of her emails with Maxwell.
"I think she understates the friendliness of the emails she had with Ghislaine Maxwell," he said. “There’s pictures of her with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, it’s clear there was a relationship there. If Donald Trump was close with them I imagine she would be too.”
Graig Graziosi10 April 2026 08:00
Melania Trump's Epstein statements baffle even Fox News
Fox News senior White House correspondent Jacqui Heinrich tried to make sense of the first lady’s comments about her alleged connection to Jeffrey Epstein on Thursday evening.
“We’ve been trying to understand why she made it today, if there was something that she is reacting to that might already be in the news that has upset her, or if there’s a story that’s yet to come out, that’s about to drop that she wanted to get ahead of,” Heinrich said on Thursday, adding that it “did feel like it came out of left field for us.”
She continued, saying that she and others at the network are “still trying to figure out why she made this statement today.”
“I’ve called every contact in my phone, including the president, and not gotten any answers,” she said.
Graig Graziosi10 April 2026 07:00
Epstein survivors issue joint statement accusing Melania Trump of 'shifting burden' of justice onto them
More than a dozen Epstein survivors signed onto a joint letter on Thursday responding to First Lady Melania Trump’s remarks calling on Congress to let them testify.
“Survivors of Jeffrey Epstein have already shown extraordinary courage by coming forward, filing reports, and giving testimony. Asking more of them now is a deflection of responsibility, not justice,” the letter says.
It continued, accusing the first lady of “shifting the burden onto survivors under politicized conditions that protect those with power: the Department of Justice, law enforcement, prosecutors, and the Trump Administration, which has still not fully complied with the Epstein Files Transparency Act.”
“It also diverts attention from Pam Bondi, who must answer for withheld files and the exposure of survivors’ identities. Those failures continue to put lives at risk while shielding enablers,” the letter continues. “Survivors have done their part. Now it’s time for those in power to do theirs.”
Graig Graziosi10 April 2026 06:00
First Lady Melania Trump's inner circle was reportedly split on whether or not she should address Epstein comments
CNN’s senior White House correspondent Kristen Holmes reports that there was apparently some disagreement between First Lady Melania Trump’s inner circle as to whether or not she should go through with her Thursday Epstein address.
“Some White House officials were stunned by the timing of the First Lady's remarks, which sparked rumors that she was trying to get out ahead of something,” she wrote on Thursday evening.
“One official said there was disagreement among those close to Melania Trump as to whether or not to go through with the remarks, given that the story had died down. But stories linking the first lady to Epstein were still circulating online, and Melania Trump wanted to go on the record with a firm denial, the official said.”
Graig Graziosi10 April 2026 04:59
Roger Stone insists Epstein had no connection to Trump and Melania's relationship
Roger Stone, a long-time Republican operative and recipient of a Trump presidential pardon, rushed to defend First Lady Melania Trump on Thursday following her remarks about Jeffrey Epstein.
He said he worked for President Donald Trump when he first began dating Melania and insisted Epstein had nothing to do with their initial meeting.
"I was working for Donald Trump in New York when he was first dating Melania. Epstein was not involved in ANY way. The smears on this incredibly kind cultured and courageous First Lady are outrageous," he said in an X post.
Earlier in the day, Trump told MS NOW reporter Jacqueline Alemany that his wife did not know Epstein.
Graig Graziosi10 April 2026 04:30
Congressman Robert Garcia said he was as shocked as anyone by First Lady Melania Trump's Epstein address
Congressman Robert Garcia, a Democrat and a member of the House Oversight Committee, told CNN's Erin Burnett that he and other lawmakers were just as taken aback by First Lady Melania Trump's comments about Jeffrey Epstein as the rest of the nation.
He said he did not know why she chose Thursday to make her case, and wondered if there is "information that she may be aware of that [lawmakers] are not."
"So no, it was actually pretty stunning to see these remarks," he said.
Graig Graziosi10 April 2026 04:00
Melania Trump's senior adviser says she spoke out because 'enough is enough'
Marc Beckman, who serves as a senior adviser to First Lady Melania Trump, told the New York Post on Thursday that she “spoke out now because enough is enough.”
Beckman said that the “lies” about the first lady’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell “must stop.”
“It is time for the public and media to focus on her incredible achievements as first lady, the lives she has positively impacted, and her commitment to our nation,” he said.
Graig Graziosi10 April 2026 03:30
House Oversight Democrat calls for 'immediate' hearing following Melania Trump's Epstein address
Congressman Robert Garcia, a top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, said he agreed with First Lady Melania Trump’s call for another congressional hearing on Jeffrey Epstein that includes testimony from the Epstein survivors.
“We agree with First Lady Melania Trump’s call for a public hearing with the survivors of Jeffrey Epstein. We encourage Chairman Comer to respond to the First Lady’s request and schedule a public hearing immediately,” he wrote on Thursday.
Graig Graziosi10 April 2026 03:00NewerOlder