Trump Claims Epstein’s ‘Victims or Whatever’ Have ‘Refused To Go Under Oath’

President Donald Trump claimed on Thursday that the victims of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein had “refused to go under oath,” days after the first lady called on Congress to allow them to testify.

Trump spoke to reporters outside the White House on a wide range of topics, including his ongoing feud with the pope and the war with Iran. The president also discussed First Lady Melania Trump’s bombshell press conference last week, in which she claimed she had “never been friends” with the deceased financier.

During her remarks, the first lady also urged Congress to give Epstein’s victims their own hearings “with the power of sworn testimony.” The president was asked on Thursday whether he agreed with his wife that public hearings should be held for survivors.

“I’m okay with that,” he said. “I think we’ve had a lot of public hearings.”

The president then claimed that the women Epstein abused, whom he referred to as “the victims or whatever,” had shot down the first lady’s proposal.

“I’m ok with it, but I understand the women didn’t want to go under oath. That’s what I heard, that the women, the victims or whatever, they refused to go under oath, which was a little surprising,” he said. “But Melania felt strongly about it because she was accused of that, I met her through Epstein, but it turned out to be totally false. It was a false story.”

A group of 15 survivors signed a statement after the first lady’s presser, calling her words “a deflection of responsibility.”

“Survivors of Jeffrey Epstein have already shown extraordinary courage by coming forward, filing reports, and giving testimony. Asking more of them now is a deflection of responsibility, not justice,” the statement read.

However, at least one survivor has said she did want to testify to Congress. Alicia Arden, who claimed she was assaulted by Epstein in a hotel room, told NPR that she was enthusiastic about the idea.

“I’m willing to testify before Congress about what Jeffrey Epstein did to me and how I was attacked in the room,” she said, noting that if other victims “feel like it’s a burden to them, then they don’t have to.”

Watch above via Fox News.

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