The Justice Department’s release of over 3 million files related to Jeffrey Epstein’s decades-long criminal enterprise has revealed previously undisclosed efforts by prominent figures to assist the convicted sex offender, even as evidence of his crimes mounted. The latest disclosures detail how, up to the time of his 2019 indictment, individuals offered public relations counsel and actively worked to rehabilitate Epstein’s image.
Among those identified in the files is Steve Bannon, former chief strategist to President Donald Trump. Following his departure from the White House in 2017, Bannon engaged with Epstein, offering advice on public relations and collaborating on a documentary project intended to reshape public perception of the financier. According to a text message released by Congress last year, Bannon acknowledged the gravity of the accusations against Epstein – specifically, the claim that he “rapist who traffics in female children to be raped by worlds most powerful, richest men” – and outlined a strategy to counter it, stating, “that can’t be redeemed.”
The files also reveal interactions between Epstein and Kathryn Ruemmler, a former White House counsel under President Barack Obama and, at the time, a partner at the law firm Latham & Watkins. Ruemmler advised Epstein on responding to inquiries from the Washington Post regarding his 2008 plea deal in Florida. Even as Epstein was not formally a client of her firm, Ruemmler accepted gifts from him, including boots, a handbag and a watch, and referred to him as “Uncle Jeffrey” in one email. She was reportedly present at Epstein’s July 2019 arraignment in New York.
Brad Karp, chairman of the law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, also appears in the released documents. Though not officially representing Epstein, Karp offered to review a letter Epstein’s legal team was preparing in response to a New York Times editorial critical of the 2008 Florida plea deal, writing in a March 2019 email, “I would love to see and comment on a draft.” Epstein reciprocated, expressing his appreciation for Karp’s “judgment and friendship.” The Wall Street Journal reported that Karp’s connection to Epstein stemmed from his function representing Leon Black, a Wall Street billionaire who paid Epstein over $150 million for purported tax and estate planning services. Karp recently resigned as chairman of Paul, Weiss, citing the distraction caused by recent reporting, after the firm secured a deal with the Trump Administration to avoid losing federal contracts.
The Epstein files underscore a pattern of influence and complicity extending to powerful circles. The timing of these interactions is particularly notable, occurring after allegations of Epstein’s abuse had been publicly reported, including a 2010 Daily Beast investigation that labeled him a “Pedophile Billionaire.” However, it was a series of articles published by Julie Brown of the Miami Herald in 2018, detailing Epstein’s sex trafficking operation and the lenient plea deal he received in 2008, that significantly shifted public and legal scrutiny towards him.
Ruemmler remains in her position as general counsel of Goldman Sachs. The Justice Department temporarily removed a reference to Donald Trump from one of the released files, only to republish it later, a move that has drawn scrutiny regarding the handling of the disclosures.
