‘OH MY GOD!!!!! I am dying’: Jeffrey Epstein Showered Obama White House Counsel Kathryn Ruemmler With Gifts, Including $9,400 Hermes Handbag and Four Seasons Spa Treatment, Emails Show
Ruemmler, who told CNN Epstein never ‘compensated’ her, accepted the gifts years after Epstein’s sex crimes were public knowledge
Former Obama White House counsel Kathryn Ruemmler has attempted to downplay a steady drip of revelations about her relationship with Jeffrey Epstein by claiming he never “compensated” her. Newly released emails, however, show the convicted sex criminal showered Ruemmler with luxury gifts, including a $9,400 Hermes handbag, an Hermes-branded Apple watch, and a spa treatment package at the Four Seasons Hotel in Washington, D.C., emails reviewed by the Washington Free Beacon show.
The gifts, revealed in documents released Friday by the Department of Justice, came years after allegations of Epstein’s sex crimes against children became public knowledge and undercut Ruemmler’s attempts to distance herself from Epstein.
Ruemmler, now the top lawyer for Goldman Sachs, has faced intense criticism as troves of Epstein records shed light on her relationship with the sex pest. When CNN reported last month that Ruemmler advised Epstein on media strategies, she told the outlet she “did not represent him and was not compensated by him.”
The documents released Friday show otherwise. In emails ranging from 2014 to 2019, Ruemmler routinely corresponded with Epstein’s associates to accept gifts or express her gratitude to Epstein. In some cases, she asked for specific items.
Howard Lutnick, the billionaire businessman who serves as President Trump’s commerce secretary, once planned a trip to Jeffrey Epstein’s private island, according to documents that the Justice Department released on Friday.
The planned visit in 2012 came years after Mr. Lutnick has said he severed ties with Mr. Epstein.
In December 2012, the records show, Mr. Lutnick sent an email to Mr. Epstein saying that he had a group of people — including his wife and children and another family — who were visiting the Caribbean. He asked where Mr. Epstein was located and whether they could visit for a meal.
Mr. Epstein replied through an assistant to give more information about the location of Little St. James, his private island off the coast of St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands. They eventually settled on plans for a lunch gathering.