Summers Banned For Life From Prestigious Economics Group

The American Economic Association has banned former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers for life over his involvement with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who died in 2019.

The decision by one of the profession’s most storied organizations to remove the veteran Democratic economist comes after newly-released emails revealed the depth of his relationship with Epstein.

“The AEA has imposed a lifetime prohibition on Mr. Summers' attending, speaking at, or otherwise participating in AEA-sponsored events or activities, including serving in any editorial or refereeing capacity for AEA journals,” the organization said in a statement published on its website on Tuesday.

“The AEA condemns Mr. Summers' conduct, as reflected in publicly reported communications, as fundamentally inconsistent with its standards of professional integrity and with the trust placed in mentors within the economics profession.”

Summers, who served in top posts under two presidents, has retreated from public life following the release of emails showing that he sought advice on a romantic matter from Epstein.

His ties to the disgraced financier were well known — Epstein was a longtime donor to Harvard University, where Summers served as president from 2001 through 2006. But correspondence released by House lawmakers described Summers' apparent extramarital pursuits of a woman he referred to as a mentee. In one email, Epstein referred to himself as the “wing man” for Summers.

The AEA said it had accepted Summers’ voluntary resignation from the organization, which publishes the American Economic Review, the Journal of Economic Literature, and the Journal of Economic Perspectives. Summers also stepped down from advisory roles at OpenAI, the Center for American Progress, the Yale Budget Lab and several other think tanks and private companies following the Epstein disclosures.

A spokesperson for Summers declined to comment.