Recent emails released by the House Oversight Committee have shown that top economic officials from the Clinton and Obama administrations consulted convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein about a woman, whose identity remains unknown. Among these officials was Lawrence Summers, who served as treasury secretary under Clinton and chaired the National Economic Council during Obama’s presidency. The woman in question was apparently living in London at the time.
In one email dated March 16, 2019—just months before Epstein was arrested on federal sex trafficking charges—Summers noted he had “spoken on the phone” with her. He recounted that, after their conversation, she told him, “I can’t talk about it later,” leading to a somewhat awkward exchange between them.
Summers shared details of their conversation, mentioning how he offered plans for the weekend but had to change them because another man was involved. He expressed his feelings of discomfort, saying, “I wasn’t feeling very good,” and added a rather peculiar remark about participating in a gift-giving contest despite being “a friend without benefits.”
In a reply email to Summers sent just 11 minutes later, Epstein commented on the woman, saying, “She’s smart” and suggested they should make others pay for past mistakes. His comments also included a rather cryptic remark about being irritated yet compassionate.
Epstein was found dead in August 2019 while awaiting trial in Manhattan. This recent communication was not the only instance where Summers and Epstein discussed women. Earlier, in November 2018, Summers forwarded a message from another woman, which urged Epstein not to respond for a while. Epstein responded, stating, “She’s already starting to look needy.” This exchange reflects their somewhat closer relationship, even today, as Summers is a board member at OpenAI.
In 2014, Summers even sought Epstein’s advice on raising funds for a project related to his wife’s online education initiative on American poetry, which resulted in a significant donation from Epstein.
When asked for comments, Summers reiterated his regret over his past association with Epstein. New letters revealed that Epstein also shared his views on President Trump, remarking that the president lacked any “normal” qualities.
Interestingly, Epstein noted that while he had met many unsavory figures, none compared to Trump. The two men once shared a friendly relationship in the 90s and early 2000s but reportedly fell out by the end of the decade over a property dispute in Palm Beach, Florida.
In a recent statement, Trump revealed he banned Epstein and his associate, Ghislaine Maxwell, from Mar-a-Lago due to their inappropriate behavior towards young women at the resort.
Lastly, some communications from the past suggested that Trump might have known more about Epstein’s activities than previously admitted, with details about young women connected to him surfacing in emails from 2011, 2015, and 2019.
