The American Economic Association (AEA) has issued a lifetime ban against former US Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, barring him from all its events. This decisive action follows the release of emails showing Summers maintained a friendly relationship with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein long after his 2008 guilty plea for soliciting prostitution from a minor.
AEA Condemns Conduct as a Breach of Professional Integrity
In a statement released on Tuesday, 2 December 2025, the prestigious scholarly association announced it had accepted Summers' resignation and imposed a permanent prohibition. The ban prevents him from "attending, speaking at, or otherwise participating" in any AEA events for life. The organisation stated his conduct, as revealed in publicly reported communications, was "fundamentally inconsistent with its standards of professional integrity and with the trust placed in mentors within the economics profession." A spokesperson for Summers did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Details of the Epstein Emails and Wider Fallout
The recently disclosed email correspondence includes exchanges from late November 2018. In one, Epstein boasted of being a "pretty good wing man" while apparently advising Summers on pursuing a romantic relationship with a woman who saw him as an economic mentor. The following day, Summers informed Epstein he had contacted the woman, pondering whether to thank her or apologise "re my being married." Further emails showed Summers' wife, Elisa New, thanked Epstein in 2015 for arranging financial support for a poetry project she directs.
The scandal has triggered significant professional consequences for the former Harvard president:
- He is currently on leave from his teaching role at Harvard University and from his directorship of the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government at the Harvard Kennedy School.
- Other institutions, including the Center for American Progress, the Center for Global Development, and Yale University's Budget Lab, have severed their affiliations with him.
A Major Error in Judgement and Lasting Damage
Summers, who served as Treasury Secretary from 1999 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton and led Harvard from 2001 to 2006, has acknowledged the gravity of his actions. When questioned about the emails last week, he stated he had "great regrets in my life" and called his association with Epstein a "major error in judgement."
Jeffrey Epstein died in jail in 2019 in what authorities ruled a suicide. His extensive network of wealthy and powerful connections has continued to provoke outrage and scrutiny long after his death. The AEA's unprecedented lifetime ban underscores the severe professional repercussions for those linked to him, highlighting how academic and professional bodies are enforcing stricter ethical standards.
