A senior House Democrat is pressuring two elite universities to produce comprehensive records and testimony about how Jeffrey Epstein leveraged relationships with their leadership and faculty to advance his trafficking operation while rehabilitating his public image.
Jamie Raskin, the top Democrat on the House judiciary committee, sent letters to Harvard University and Bard College demanding extensive documentation of Epstein's donations, communications, and personal connections within each institution. He also requested that Leon Botstein, Bard's recently departed president, submit to a recorded interview.
Raskin's push reflects frustration with previous institutional investigations that he says either failed or deliberately obscured the full scope of Epstein's influence on campus. Harvard conducted internal reviews in 2008 and 2019, yet those probes missed donations Epstein made after the university supposedly banned them in 2008, as well as the depth of his personal relationships with faculty and his involvement in student admissions decisions.
"It is time for Harvard, like the rest of America, to come clean and engage in the comprehensive accounting that will allow us to learn from this nightmare," Raskin wrote to Harvard president Alan Garber.
The inquiry widens scrutiny of a former Harvard president now in focus. Larry Summers, who led the university from 2001 to 2006, recently resigned from his teaching post after the Justice Department released files showing he corresponded frequently with Epstein on topics including women and politics. One email revealed Summers pursuing a relationship with someone who described him as an economic mentor. Summers later stated: "I am deeply ashamed of my actions and recognize the pain they have caused."
Epstein donated more than $9 million to Harvard and affiliated programs between 1998 and 2008, overlapping substantially with Summers's presidency.
At Bard, the pressure centers on Botstein's 51-year tenure. The college's board of trustees forced his resignation following an independent review that found "substantial lapses in leadership and candor" during his years in charge. An internal investigation by WilmerHale law firm, released in May, determined that Botstein had never disclosed fees from a consulting agreement with an Epstein entity and failed to grasp how his pursuit of Epstein as a donor could damage the college's reputation and expose students to risk.
The investigation cleared Botstein of illegal conduct and found he neither witnessed nor was aware of Epstein's crimes. But it concluded he had misrepresented the nature of his relationship with Epstein to the public and to Bard's community. Botstein initially framed his exit as a long-planned retirement.
An Epstein victim who had previous contact with Botstein stated she believed he was part of a circle of accomplished men whose associations with Epstein helped polish the financier's reputation in elite circles.
Raskin's letters signal congressional intent to examine how universities allowed a convicted sex trafficker to exploit institutional prestige and faculty networks to advance his crimes. He is seeking all requested materials by July 1. Bard acknowledged receipt of the letter but declined further comment. Harvard did not respond to a request for comment.
Author James Rodriguez: "Universities have spent years insisting internal reviews proved they did nothing wrong. Raskin is right to demand they prove it."
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