00:00Good afternoon. The lies linking me with the disgraceful Jeffrey Epstein need to end today.
00:11The individuals lying about me are devoid of ethical standards, humility and respect.
00:21I do not object to their ignorance, but rather I reject their mean-spirited attempts.
00:30To defame my reputation.
00:33I've never been friends with Epstein.
00:37Donald and I were invited to the same parties as Epstein from time to time,
00:45since overlapping in social circles is common in New York City and Palm Beach.
00:54To be clear, I never had a relationship with Epstein or his accomplice Maxwell.
01:04My email reply to Maxwell cannot be categorized as anything more than casual correspondence.
01:15My polite reply to her email doesn't amount to anything more than a tribal note.
01:24I am not Epstein's victim.
01:28Epstein did not introduce me to Donald Trump.
01:32I met my husband by chance at the New York City party in 1998.
01:40This initial encounter with my husband is documented in a detail in my book, Melania.
01:48The first time I crossed paths with Epstein was in the year 2000 at an event Donald and I attended
01:58together.
01:59At the time, I had never met Epstein and had no knowledge of his criminal undertakings.
02:11Numerous fake images and statements about Epstein and me have been calculating on social media for years now.
02:24Be cautious about what you believe.
02:28These images and stories are completely false.
02:33I am not a witness or a name witness in connection with any of Epstein's crimes.
02:42My name has never appeared in court documents, depositions, victim statements or FBI interviews surrounding the Epstein matter.
02:54I have never had any knowledge of Epstein's abuse of his victims.
03:03I was never involved in any capacity.
03:07I was not a participant, was never on Epstein's plane and never visited his private island.
03:18I have never been legally accused or convinced of a crime in connection with Epstein's sex trafficking, abuse of minors
03:29and other repulsive behavior.
03:31The false smears about me from mean-spirited and politically motivated individuals and entities looking to cause damage to my
03:44good name to gain financially and climb politically must stop.
03:50My attorneys and I have fought these unfound and baseless lies with success and will continue to maintain my sound
04:00reputation without hesitation.
04:02To date, several individuals and companies have been legally obligated to publicly apologize and retract their lies about me, such
04:16as Daily Beast, James Carville and HarperCollins UK.
04:24Now is the time for Congress to act.
04:28Epstein was not alone.
04:31Several prominent male executives resigned from their powerful positions after this matter became widely politicized.
04:41Of course, this doesn't amount to guilt, but we still must work openly and transparently to uncover the truth.
04:52I call on Congress to provide the women who have been victimized by Epstein with a public hearing specifically centered
05:02around the survivors.
05:04Give these victims their opportunity to testify under oath in front of Congress with the power of sworn testimony.
05:16Each and every woman should have her day to tell her story in public, if she wishes, and then her
05:24testimony should be permanently entered into the Congressional record.
05:32Then, and only then, we will have the truth.
