A landmark, first-of-its-kind bill just passed through Congress with flying colors –and it’s all thanks to First Lady Melania Trump.
During a Rose Garden ceremony yesterday, President Donald Trump signed a law criminalizing the spread of nonconsensual intimate imagery, including AI-generated deepfakes and revenge porn.
The law, known as the “Take It Down Act” was championed and spearheaded by Melania, who took the lead on the bill as part of her revitalized Be Best initiative.
“Today, through the Take It Down Act, we affirm that the well-being of our children is central to the future of our families and America,” Melania Trump said during the ceremony.
As a symbolic gesture, Melania Trump also signed the executive order alongside her husband.
“Today, through the ‘TAKE IT DOWN’ Act, we affirm that the well-being of our children is central to the future of our families and America. I am proud to say that the values of BE BEST will be reflected in the law of the land.” – FLOTUS pic.twitter.com/c9PujU5MGZ
— First Lady Melania Trump (@FLOTUS) May 19, 2025
The bill passed the House 409–2 in April after unanimously clearing the Senate in February, making it one of the rare pieces of legislation to have overwhelming bipartisan support from both Republicans and Democrats.
The bill originated under the co-sponsorship of Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), who was at the signing ceremony, and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.). Lawmakers from both parties have described it as a long-overdue protection against online abuse.
Under the law, anyone who distributes intimate images of someone without their consent faces federal criminal penalties.
The law mandates that social media companies promptly remove such content when alerted, and empowers the Federal Trade Commission to enforce it.
The law comes amid mounting concerns over the weaponization of AI to create realistic but fake sexual images or videos, often targeting women and public figures.
“The TAKE IT DOWN ACT is an historic win for victims of revenge porn and deepfake image abuse,” Cruz said in a statement Monday.
“Predators who weaponize new technology to post this exploitative filth will now rightfully face criminal consequences, and Big Tech will no longer be allowed to turn a blind eye to the spread of this vile material.”
The Take It Down Act is one of the highest-profile tech laws signed during Trump’s second term, offering a rare moment of insight into how a tech law can break Congressional gridlock.
While the bill has been endorsed by countless industry and victim advocates, some digital rights organizations have raised concerns about privacy and free speech infringement.
“With the rise of AI image generation, countless women have been harassed with deepfakes and other explicit images distributed against their will. This is wrong, so horribly wrong, and it’s a very abusive situation,” Trump said at the ceremony.