Harvard University professor and former presidential advisor Larry Summers has announced he will be stepping back from public life following the explosive revelation that he sought romantic advice from convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein over several years.
The Shocking Email Exchanges
The House Oversight Committee recently released a cache of emails that exposed the extensive communication between Summers and Epstein, spanning from 2013 to 2019. These exchanges show the prominent economist frequently discussing his personal love life with the disgraced financier, who had already pleaded guilty to sex crimes against children in 2008.
In one particularly revealing email from March 2019, the 70-year-old married professor complained to Epstein about feeling like "the friend without benefits" in his relationship with a woman who had jilted him. Summers even asked the convicted sex offender for guidance on how to respond to her text messages.
The emails reveal Epstein referring to himself as Summers' "wingman" in their discussions about the professor's romantic pursuits. In November 2018, Summers forwarded an email from a woman to Epstein, seeking advice on how to respond, to which Epstein replied that she was "already beginning to sound needy :)".
Fallout and Political Reactions
The revelations have prompted significant backlash, with Senator Elizabeth Warren calling for Harvard to sever ties with its former president. Warren told CNN that Summers "cannot be trusted" with young college students given his lengthy friendship with Epstein.
Summers, who served as Bill Clinton's Treasury Secretary and Barack Obama's Director of the National Economic Council, released a statement expressing deep shame for his actions. "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," he stated.
Academic Consequences and Future
Despite stepping back from public life, Summers will continue to teach economics at Harvard, the Ivy League institution where he previously served as president from 2001 to 2006. The university had already stopped accepting donations from Epstein in 2008 following his sex crime convictions.
Summers' marriage to Elisa New, a professor emerita of American Literature at Harvard, now faces scrutiny, though it remains unclear whether they had an open relationship or if his communications with Epstein constituted infidelity. The professor told The Harvard Crimson that he "greatly regrets" his friendship with Epstein, describing it as a "major error of judgment."
The scandal represents another blow to Harvard's reputation and raises serious questions about the ethical boundaries between academics and wealthy donors with criminal backgrounds.
