from WNYC Studios. I'm Brian Lerer. This is my daily politics podcast. It's Monday, April 13th.

Well, it's been a while since the Jeffrey Epstein story was front and center in the headlines.

Many have jokingly were not speculating

that President Trump launched the war with Iran to deflect from the persistent attention on his

ties to the billionaire pedophile. But last week, First Lady Melania Trump brought new attention

to the case with a surprise statement about her own name in the Epstein

files.

Now some people are asking, jokingly or not, if things have come full circle, did Melania

bring the focus back to Epstein to distract Americans from the war?

Here's part of her statement.

The lies linking me with the disgraceful Jeffrey Epstein

need to end today.

The individuals lying about me

a devoid of ethical standards, humility, and respect. I do not object to their ignorance, but rather I reject their mean-spirited attempts to defame my reputation.

I never been friends with Epstein.

Donald and I were invited to the same parties as Epstein from time to time,

since overlapping in social circles is common in New York City and Palm Beach.

To be clear, I never had a relationship with Epstein. New York City and Palm Beach.

To be clear, I never had a relationship with Epstein or his accomplice, Maxwell.

My email reply to Maxwell cannot be catarized as anything more than casual correspondence.

My polite reply to her email doesn't amount to anything more than a tribal note.

I am not Epstein's victim.

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