WASHINGTON—First lady Melania Trump denied having ties to late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and called on Congress to hold a public hearing for his victims in a surprise announcement at the White House on Thursday.
“The lies linking me with the disgraceful Jeffrey Epstein need to end today,” the first lady said in comments read from a lectern in the main foyer of the White House. “The individuals lying about me are devoid of ethical standards, humility, and respect,” she said.
The first lady said Thursday that she was never aware of any of Epstein’s abuse. “I was not a participant, was never on Epstein’s plane, and never visited his private island,” she said.
In her address, Melania Trump said she was responding in part to social-media posts that were circulating with fake images and statements connecting her with Epstein. “These images and stories are completely false,” she said.
President Trump socialized with Epstein in the 1990s and 2000s and he and Melania Trump were photographed with Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell at events. The president has denied wrongdoing and said he cut off ties years before Epstein was arrested in 2006.
The first lady said she was never friends with Epstein, although she and President Trump were at times invited to the same parties and their social circles at times overlapped in New York and Palm Beach, Fla. She also said she wasn’t one of Epstein’s victims and he didn’t introduce her to her future husband. Melania Trump wrote in her memoir she was introduced to Trump by a friend at the Kit Kat Klub in New York in 1998.
The first lady has been in a legal fight with author Michael Wolff , who wrote a biography of President Trump and corresponded with Epstein in the years before his 2019 death. Wolff said she threatened to sue for defamation over allegations he made in a podcast saying she was part of Epstein’s social circle. Wolff sued the first lady in October to stop her from filing a potential lawsuit, saying his statements weren’t defamatory. She has moved to have the suit dismissed.
Melania Trump “is proud to continue standing up to those who spread malicious and defamatory falsehoods as they desperately try to get undeserved attention and money from their unlawful conduct,” Nicholas Clemens, a spokesman for the first lady, said in a statement responding to Wolff at the time .
The first lady also said in her statement Thursday that she never had a relationship with Maxwell. Among the emails released by the Justice Department was a 2002 message to Maxwell.
The message said: “Dear G! How are you? Nice story about JE in NY mag. You look great on the picture. I know you are very busy flying all over the world. How was Palm Beach? I cannot wait to go down. Give me a call when you are back in NY. Have a great time! Love, Melania”
An email exchange apparently between Melania Trump and Ghislaine Maxwell, associate of the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, is shown in this image released by the Department of Justice in Washington, D.C., U.S., as part of documents from its investigation into Epstein. U.S. Justice Department/Handout via REUTERS THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. REDACTED AREAS FROM SOURCE.
The first lady said the message was casual correspondence. “My polite reply to her email doesn’t amount to anything more than a trivial note,” she said.
The first lady’s announcement came as the White House has been focused on a cease-fire deal with Iran. West Wing officials were taken by surprise with her statement.
President Trump last year unsuccessfully tried to derail legislation to force disclosures of Justice Department files related to Epstein, calling the effort a Democratic-led hoax. He later relented and signed the bill into law, and the Justice Department has released millions of files related to the case. A House committee has been investigating and calling prominent Epstein associates to testify about their ties.
The first lady pushed for more steps on Capitol Hill and said Epstein didn’t act alone. A public hearing should be held by Congress, the first lady said, allowing Epstein victims to testify under oath. “We still must work openly and transparently to uncover the truth,” she said.
Write to Meridith McGraw at Meridith.McGraw@WSJ.com
