Newly released emails have exposed a deeply troubling chapter in the history of Harvard University, revealing that its former president, Larry Summers, chose to spend his honeymoon on the private island of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
A Honeymoon on 'Paedophile Island'
According to flight logs obtained by The Harvard Crimson, Summers and his new wife, English professor Elisa New, flew to Little Saint James on Epstein's infamous 'Lolita Express' on December 11, 2005. This occurred just ten days after their wedding and while Summers was still serving as Harvard's president.
The journey from Bedford, Massachusetts placed the newlyweds in the company of Epstein's notorious madam and ex-girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell and his former pilot, Larry Visoski. A spokesperson for Summers attempted to downplay the visit, describing it as "a brief visit of less than a day" during a honeymoon that primarily took place in St. John and Jamaica.
However, this explanation rings hollow given the timing. The visit occurred six months after Palm Beach police began investigating Epstein for the rape of a 14-year-old girl and two months after officers executed a search warrant on his Florida mansion.
Financial Entanglements and Damning Communications
The controversy extends far beyond this single trip. Emails released by the House Oversight Committee reveal that Summers maintained extensive communication with Epstein between 2013 and 2019, long after the financier's 2008 guilty plea for sex crimes.
In these exchanges, Summers referred to Epstein as his 'wingman' and sought advice on his love life, analysing his relationships in economic terms of maximising profit. He complained to Epstein about feeling like "the friend without benefits" in one relationship and asked for texting advice.
Meanwhile, Professor New maintained her own financial relationship with Epstein. The emails show she solicited thousands of dollars from him for her project, Poetry in America, including a $500,000 gift in 2014. She wrote to Epstein in 2015: "It really means a lot to me, all financial help aside, Jeffrey, that you are rooting for me and thinking about me."
Fallout and Institutional Reckoning
The revelations have triggered significant consequences for Summers' career. Harvard announced it is conducting a "review of information concerning individuals included in the newly-released Epstein documents," prompting Summers to take immediate leave from his position as director of the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government at the Harvard Kennedy School.
Summers will not complete his fall semester lectures and will not teach any courses in the spring. He has severed ties with the Center for American Progress and the Center for Global Development, resigned from OpenAI's board, and will not have his contracts renewed with The New York Times Opinions section and Bloomberg News.
Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren has urged Harvard to cut ties completely, stating that Summers "cannot be trusted" with young students and displayed "monumentally bad judgment."
Summers expressed regret, 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."
This scandal represents another stain on Harvard's reputation, following revelations that Epstein donated more than $9 million to the university and visited campus dozens of times between 2010 and 2018. The institution has since agreed to adopt new guidelines on accepting controversial gifts, but the damage to its prestige may be lasting.
