Larry Summers, the former Treasury Secretary under President Bill Clinton and ex-president of Harvard University, has announced he will be stepping back from public life. This decision follows the recent release of his communications with Jeffrey Epstein by the House Oversight Committee. In a statement issued on Monday, Summers expressed profound regret over his actions, saying, “I am deeply ashamed of my actions and recognize the pain they have caused. I take full responsibility for my misguided decision to continue communicating with Mr. Epstein.”
Despite his decision to withdraw from public engagements, Summers will continue to fulfill his teaching obligations as a faculty member at Harvard University, according to reports from the Harvard Crimson. He stated that this step back is part of a broader effort to “rebuild trust and repair relationships” with those closest to him.
Reports indicate that Summers maintained a relationship with Epstein for many years, particularly during his tenure as Harvard's president from 2001 to 2006. Public flight records reveal that he flew on Epstein's aircraft at least four times and was at the helm of Harvard while the university accepted millions in donations from Epstein. Notably, all contributions occurred before Epstein's guilty plea in 2008 related to charges of solicitation of prostitution with a minor.
Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) criticized Summers, highlighting his connections to Epstein as a demonstration of “monumentally bad judgment.” In her statement, which was first reported by CNN, she urged Harvard to sever all ties with Summers, asserting, “If he had so little ability to distance himself from Jeffrey Epstein even after all that was publicly known about Epstein’s sex offenses involving underage girls, then Summers cannot be trusted to advise our nation’s politicians, policymakers, and institutions.”
It is important to note that no Epstein survivor has accused Summers of any wrongdoing, and there is no public evidence to suggest his involvement in Epstein’s crimes. Nevertheless, the recently released emails indicate a more intimate relationship between Summers and Epstein than previously understood. These communications included discussions about dating advice and personal matters, continuing well after Epstein's 2008 conviction.
One significant email exchange from March 2019 shows Epstein giving Summers advice, though the specifics remain unclear. In the lengthy correspondence, Summers noted, “I said what are you up to. She said ‘I’m busy’. I said awfully coy u are,” to which Epstein replied, “Shes smart. –making you pay for past errors.” This exchange occurred just months before Epstein was federally charged with sex trafficking.
In other email exchanges, Summers and Epstein discussed former President Donald Trump. In a 2017 email, Summers referred to Trump as “a clown” and “increasingly dangerous on foreign policy.” Epstein also claimed to have connections within the Trump administration, further highlighting the nature of their conversations.
Summers' wife, Elisa New, a professor of American literature, was also involved in communications with Epstein. In one email from 2014, she solicited a $500,000 donation for a project on American poetry, leading to Epstein donating $110,000 through a non-Harvard entity. A spokesperson for the couple stated that New “regrets accepting funding from Epstein” and that they later contributed more than the amount received to a group working against sex trafficking.
A 2020 report by Harvard noted that Epstein had donated over $9 million to support various faculty and programs during Summers’ presidency. The largest of these donations, a $6.5 million gift in 2003, was directed to Harvard’s Program for Evolutionary Dynamics, which Summers helped establish.
Summers’ connections to Epstein were further scrutinized in documents obtained by ABC News, which detailed Summers' flights on Epstein's private jet, beginning in 1998. The logs indicate that Summers was a passenger on multiple occasions, including a flight shortly after his marriage in December 2005. Notably, Ghislaine Maxwell, who is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for her role in Epstein’s crimes, was also listed as a passenger on that flight.
The ongoing revelations surrounding Larry Summers and his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein continue to draw public attention and scrutiny, raising questions about accountability and the implications of past associations with individuals accused of heinous crimes.