Former Harvard President Larry Summers Withdraws from Public Roles Following Epstein Email Revelations

Larry Summers has announced he will withdraw from public commitments following the disclosure of emails revealing his continued friendly relationship with Jeffrey Epstein after the financier's 2008 guilty plea for soliciting underage prostitution.

In Boston, Summers, who previously served as Harvard University president and US Treasury Secretary, released a statement to The Harvard Crimson and other media outlets on Monday indicating his intention to "rebuild trust and repair relationships with the people closest to me."

"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," Summers stated.

While stepping back from public roles, Summers confirmed he would continue his teaching responsibilities at Harvard, where he currently instructs several economics courses.

Epstein died by suicide in a Manhattan detention facility in 2019 while awaiting trial on charges related to sexually abusing and trafficking underage girls.

Recently released emails demonstrated that many individuals within Epstein's extensive network of wealthy and influential connections maintained contact with him well after his 2008 criminal conviction.

One 2019 email exchange showed Summers describing an interaction with a woman to Epstein: "I said what are you up to. She said 'I'm busy'. I said awfully coy u are."

Epstein, whose communications often contained spelling and grammatical errors, responded: "you reacted well.. annoyed shows caring. , no whining showed strentgh."

When questioned about these communications last week, Summers acknowledged that he has "great regrets in my life" and characterized his association with Epstein as a "major error in judgement."

Summers held the position of Treasury Secretary from 1999 to 2001 during President Bill Clinton's administration. He subsequently served as Harvard's president for five years from 2001 to 2006. Currently, he maintains his professorship and directs the university's Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government.