House Passes Melania-Backed Deepfake Bill to Protect Victims of Exploitation

In a major bipartisan victory, the GOP-led House overwhelmingly passed the "Take It Down Act" on Monday landmark legislation championed by First Lady Melania Trump to combat the spread of non-consensual intimate imagery and AI-generated deepfakes. The bill, formally titled the “Tools to Address Known Exploitation by Immobilizing Technological Deepfakes on Websites and Networks (TAKE IT DOWN) Act,” passed with support from 207 Republicans and 202 Democrats.

The legislation, authored by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and previously passed unanimously by the Senate in February, aims to:

• Criminalize the online publication of real and deepfake non-consensual intimate images.

• Require online platforms hosting user-generated content to remove such material within 48 hours of a removal request.

• Impose fines, imprisonment, and mandatory restitution for violators, particularly where minors are exploited.

The Federal Trade Commission will be tasked with enforcing compliance, ensuring victims have meaningful recourse against those who seek to exploit or harm them in the digital age.

First Lady Melania Trump has been a powerful voice behind this effort, connecting the bill to her longstanding "Be Best" initiative aimed at promoting children’s safety and well-being. Speaking alongside Sen. Cruz and survivors of online exploitation, Melania emphasized, “Every young person deserves a safe online space to express themself freely, without the looming threat of exploitation or harm.”

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) praised Melania's leadership, noting, “The First Lady’s leadership has been instrumental in the bill’s passage, and we look forward to seeing this signed into law.”

Once President Donald Trump signs the bill, America will have one of the strongest legislative defenses against online sexual exploitation in the world a needed move, considering:

• The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children has reported a 35% spike in reports of deepfake exploitation over the past year.

• A Pew Research study found that 79% of Americans are concerned about the misuse of AI-generated images and videos.

Of course, not everyone was on board. Reps. Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Eric Burlison (R-MO) voted against the bill, with Massie claiming the measure could lead to a “slippery slope.” But their objections were overwhelmingly drowned out by the urgent bipartisan consensus that action was necessary.

Melania Trump summed it up perfectly “Today’s bipartisan passage of the Take It Down Act is a powerful statement that we stand united in protecting the dignity, privacy, and safety of our children.”

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