Melania Trump makes rare appearance as she urges lawmakers to sign bill making ‘revenge-porn’ a federal crime

Melania Trump has made a rare appearance to urge lawmakers to crack down on so-called ‘revenge porn’ by making it a federal crime.

First Lady Melania Trump appeared before Capitol Hill on Monday (March 3) to push for a bipartisan bill that would tackle non-consensual pornography being shared online as well as AI-generated intimate images.

The 54-year-old former model said artificial intelligence is being used nefariously to create ‘deepfake’ porn images of victims without their consent and create a ‘toxic’ space online for young people to navigate.

The proposed Take It Down bill would make it a crime to post and create such images and would apply pressure to technology companies to remove the content within 48 hours, the BBC reports.

In her first public appearance in the new Trump administration, the first lady told the panel: “It’s heartbreaking to witness some teens, especially girls, grappling with the overwhelming challenges posed by malicious online content, like deepfakes.”

The bill had already passed the Senate with bipartisan support, being brought by Republican Ted Cruz (Texas) and supported by Democrat Amy Klobuchar (Minnesota).

However, it still needs to pass through the House of Representatives before being written into law.

Melania continued: “In an era where digital interaction are integral to daily life, it is imperative that we safeguard children from mean-spirited and hurtful online behaviour.”