On August 14, 2025, President Donald Trump confirmed his support for First Lady Melania Trump’s threat to sue Hunter Biden for over $1 billion, urging her to “go forward” with legal action. The dispute centers on Biden’s August 5 YouTube interview on Channel 5 with Andrew Callaghan, where he claimed convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein introduced Melania to Trump in the late 1990s. Trump, speaking to Fox News Radio’s Brian Kilmeade, denied the allegation, stating he met Melania through modeling agent Paolo Zampolli at a 1998 New York Fashion Week party. “I told her, ‘Let’s go ahead and do it,’” Trump said, offering his legal team to pursue the case.
Melania’s attorney, Alejandro Brito, sent a letter to Biden and his lawyer, Abbe Lowell, on August 6, demanding a retraction and apology for the “false, defamatory, and salacious” statements, claiming they caused significant financial and reputational harm. Biden refused, responding with an expletive-laden defiance, saying, “F*** that, that’s not gonna happen,” and citing reports from Michael Wolff and a 2019 New York Times article. Legal experts note that defamation suits by public figures like Melania face a high bar, requiring proof of malicious intent.
The controversy, echoing Trump’s tactic of aggressive litigation, has reignited debates over his ties to Epstein, who died in 2019. As the legal threat looms, the case underscores the polarized climate, with implications for Trump’s administration and Biden’s public image.
