Melania Trump Denies Relationship With Jeffrey Epstein

First lady Melania Trump delivered a rare public statement from the White House on April 9, 2026, denying any friendship or relationship with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell.

In a six-minute livestreamed address, the first lady stated that she never had a relationship with Epstein or Maxwell. She characterized circulating social media posts and images regarding her connection to Epstein as fake and described the accusations as false smears created by mean-spirited and politically motivated individuals and entities seeking financial gain or political advancement.

The address follows the Justice Department’s release of Epstein-related records earlier in the year. Those files included a brief exchange between Melania Trump and Maxwell that was signed Love, Melania. During her remarks, the first lady denied that her emails to Maxwell were anything more than casual correspondence.

Denials of Personal Ties

Melania Trump explicitly denied being Epstein’s victim and stated that the financier did not introduce her to Donald Trump. She clarified that she first met Epstein in 2000 at a party she attended with her husband, at which time she was known as Melania Knauss. She asserted that at the time of this meeting, she had no knowledge of his criminal undertakings.

While she denied a personal relationship, she acknowledged that she and the president were invited to the same parties as Epstein from time to time. She explained that overlapping in social circles is common in New York City and Palm Beach.

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.

Melania Trump

Call for Congressional Hearings

During the statement, the first lady urged the U.S. Congress to take action by holding a public hearing specifically centered on the survivors of Epstein’s abuse. She called for victims to be given the opportunity to testify under oath, stating that such testimony should be permanently entered into the congressional record.

Melania Trump told reporters that now is the time for Congress to act, adding that then and only then, we will have the truth.

Representative Robert Garcia of California, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, described the first lady’s remarks as pretty stunning. Speaking to MS NOW, Garcia stated that the committee had been asking for survivor testimony for months but had been told it was not possible. He welcomed the call for hearings, noting that the first lady’s comments suggested that there are still powerful men out there and still stories to be told.

Timing and Internal Reactions

The statement was delivered at a podium in the same White House room that Donald Trump used the previous week to address the nation regarding the war in Iran. The timing of the address coincided with news that the Justice Department had informed the House Oversight Committee on April 8, 2026, that former Attorney General Pam Bondi would not comply with a subpoena to provide testimony the following week.

President Donald Trump told MS NOW that he did not know anything about the first lady’s statement before she delivered it.

The first lady’s senior adviser, Marc Beckman, defended the decision to speak publicly, stating that enough is enough and that the lies must stop. Beckman urged the media and the public to instead focus on the first lady’s incredible achievements as First Lady and her commitment to the nation.

According to reports from NBC News, the statement was unexpected even among some of her own staff, who gathered in the Grand Foyer of the White House to watch the remarks without prior knowledge of the specific content.