Melania Trump made her first public remarks of her second tenure as first lady on Monday, speaking out against revenge porn and deepfake images generated by artificial intelligence. In a speech at the U.S. Capitol, she criticised Democrats for their lack of support on the issue.
'I expected to see more Democrat leaders with us here today to address this serious issue. Surely as adults, we can prioritise America's children ahead of partisan politics,' she said. Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna of California was the only Democratic lawmaker at the event.
The first lady used the occasion to relaunch her Be Best initiative, emphasising online safety. 'In today's AI-driven world, the threat of privacy breaches is alarmingly high,' she noted. 'It is imperative that we safeguard children from mean-spirited and hurtful online behaviour.'
Republican Senator Ted Cruz led a roundtable discussion where the first lady heard from teenage victims of AI-generated fake pornography. Cruz sponsored the Take It Down Act, which would require websites to remove non-consensual sexual images, including deepfakes, within 48 hours of a complaint.
One victim, 15-year-old Elliston Berry, will be Melania Trump's guest on Tuesday night when President Donald Trump addresses a joint session of Congress. Berry described being violated when a classmate used AI to create a nude image from her social media photo. 'I was 14 years old when I was violated all over social media,' she said.
Cruz noted that Berry's mother contacted his office after failing to get the images removed from Snapchat. He personally called the CEO to have them taken down. 'It should not take a sitting senator picking up the phone to get a picture down,' he said. 'This bill will give victims that right as a matter of federal law.'
