Kathryn Ruemmler, former President Barack Obama’s longest-serving White House counsel, announced Thursday she will leave her position of chief legal officer at Goldman Sachs after newly released emails revealed her friendly exchanges with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The emails, released by the Justice Department, show Ruemmler referring to Epstein as “Uncle Jeffrey,” asking about a possible day trip to his private Caribbean island, and wishing him happy birthday. Ruemmler has denied any wrongdoing and has claimed that her relationship with Epstein was strictly professional.
“I made the determination that the media attention on me, relating to my prior work as a defense attorney, was becoming a distraction,” Ruemmler told the Financial Times on Thursday, explaining her decision to leave Goldman Sachs. She is set to officially leave the firm on June 30.
Ruemmler joined the firm a few years after serving in the Obama White House, where she advised the president on legal matters involving domestic policy, foreign affairs, and national security. She served as White House counsel from June 2011 to June 2014.
A spokeswoman for Ruemmler told the New York Post that she “has done nothing wrong and has nothing to hide. Nothing in the record suggests otherwise.”
A review of the Epstein files revealed numerous emails between Ruemmler and Epstein in the years after his 2008 conviction for solicitation of prostitution and solicitation of a minor.
In one email from January 4, 2019, Ruemmler wrote, “Am totally tricked out by Uncle Jeffrey today! Jeffrey boots, handbag, and w=tch!”
When asked if Epstein had given her the gifts, Reummler spokeswoman Jami Schlicher told The Daily Wire that “it has been well reported that Epstein’s MO was to provide unsolicited gifts and do unsolicited favors for people.”
In another email from December 2015, Ruemmler told Epstein’s assistant that he was like an older brother to her.
“Well, I adore him. It’s like having another older brother!” she said.
Other emails show her wishing Epstein a happy birthday and expressing gratitude for his friendship.
“Happy Birthday! I hope you enjoy the day with your one true love,” she wrote Epstein on January 20, 2015.
Another email was sent while she was traveling to Megève, a ski resort in France.
“In the Swiss Air first class lounge drinking good red wine (only one glass!)= and am grateful for your friendship. Will=send reports from Megeve. Xo,” she wrote on December 31, 2015.
In a January 17, 2017 email, Ruemmler asked whether she could visit Little Saint James, a private island owned by Epstein, where accusers say he sex trafficked women and underage girls.
“Our flight Sunday back to NY is from St Luci=. Can we take a day trip to the island on Sat or is it too far?” she wrote after Epstein offered to fly her there.
Schlicher said the island trip never happened, and characterized Ruemmler’s relationship with Epstein as professional.
“Ms. Ruemmler has been clear and consistent from the outset: she knew him through her work as a criminal defense attorney, shared a client with him, received referrals from him, and was friendly in that professional context,” she told The Daily Wire. “At times, Epstein sought informal advice, and she provided feedback based on her understanding at the time, without any formal involvement. Ms. Ruemmler has deep sympathy for those harmed by Epstein and if she knew then what she knows now, she never would have dealt with him at all.”
Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon has publicly stood by Ruemmler amid the controversy.
“Throughout her tenure, Kathy has been an extraordinary general counsel, and we are grateful for her contributions and sound advice on a wide range of consequential legal matters for the firm,” he said. “As one of the most accomplished professionals in her field, Kathy has also been a mentor and friend to many of our people, and she will be missed.”
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