CNN: Obama's White House Counsel Routinely Advised and Defended Jeffrey Epstein

Kathy Ruemmler had been a top Obama choice for Attorney General, America's top law enforcement officer, but she withdrew her name when she came under scrutiny.

Gee I wonder why.

When billionaire sex offender Jeffrey Epstein needed legal advice, help responding to negative press, or just moral support, he often turned to an unexpected confidante -- Kathy Ruemmler, an elite attorney who served two US presidents and was once a top candidate for US attorney general.

As thousands of new documents tied to Epstein have been released, many of those closest to him have paid a steep price for their friendship by forfeiting influential jobs and weathering fierce public blowback. Yet Ruemmler, a former White House counsel for Barack Obama, has maintained a prestigious post as chief legal officer for Goldman Sachs.

Friendship? Really?

The bank has continued to stand by her -- even as emails show Epstein calling her "my great defender" and seeking her help pushing back on reports detailing his abuse of underage girls.

A CNN KFile review of Epstein's emails and travel schedules sheds new light on his relationship with the power-broking lawyer and shows that their ties went far beyond professional advice and into the realm of a friendship.

Among the many high-profile and notable names that appear in the Epstein messages, Ruemmler is one of the most frequently referenced, with more than 100 exchanges between her and Epstein over several years. Epstein's schedule reveals that he was set to meet with Ruemmler more than 50 times between July 2014 and May 2019, including for lunches and dinners with celebrities, apartment hunting, and personal beauty appointments.

As early as 2014, the year that Ruemmler left the Obama White House, the pair already appeared close, with Ruemmler telling Epstein in one email, "I'll be here all week -- you may get sick of me."

Note this is after Jeffrey Epstein's conviction for prostitution. Which was understood to actually be about underaged child sex trafficking.

But their "friendship" endured.

In a statement to CNN, Ruemmler said, "In 2014, I barely knew Jeffrey Epstein. My remark was a throwaway line in response to his invitation to attend multiple meetings with business contacts."

Across the many messages, Ruemmler emerges as a confidant and advocate for Epstein, at times helping him manage his public reputation following his 2008 conviction for soliciting prostitution from a minor.

Epstein's estate is fighting to keep hundreds of additional emails between Ruemmler and Epstein private, arguing that they are protected by attorney-client privilege. The privilege log shows that Ruemmler continued to communicate with Epstein through at least June 2019 and suggests she was more involved with Epstein's legal affairs than previously known.

In a statement to CNN, Ruemmler referred to Epstein as a "business referral source" when she was at the law firm Latham & Watkins and that she knew him in a "professional capacity" when she served as head of the white collar defense group at the firm. But she said she "did not represent him and was not compensated by him."

Perfect! Then the emails are not privileged.

CNN sent a series of questions to Ruemmler and Goldman Sachs prior to publication. Ruemmler provided answers to several of them, but others she declined to directly answer -- including whether she was involved with drafting a public relations statement for Epstein or took part in discussions to help him respond to media inquiries about his sexual abuse.

I assume this is the statement she drafted for her "friend" the pedophile sex trafficker.

In 2019, as major outlets reexamined Epstein's long history of sexually abusing minors, he invoked her advice directly. In a text message from that year, Epstein said Ruemmler helped him craft a public-relations statement in response to a forthcoming Washington Post editorial calling for Congress to investigate him.

At 4 a.m. on March 7, 2019, Epstein texted a draft statement to a contact redacted by House investigators, calling it a "Ruemmler proposal" and writing, "this is what Kathy suggests we tell Waco," correcting the typo seconds later to "Wapo." The statement -- which Epstein said Ruemmler provided -- rejected claims he received a "sweetheart deal" in his 2008 conviction and argued prosecutors had pursued him too aggressively.

"The criticism is wrong and reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of both [the] facts underlying Mr. Epstein's case and how it was prosecuted by both local and federal authorities. Far from a receiving a sweetheart deal, Mr. Epstein was subjected to a lengthy, aggressive, and highly unusual federal investigation for what were, in essence, local offenses of sexual solicitation. He accepted responsibility, served time and prison, and paid significant monetary settlements to the victims involved," said the statement.

While Jeffrey Epstein's other "friends" have paid a price, this Democrat woman -- no privilege here! -- continues working for Goldman Sachs.

But Ruemmler has managed to fly under the radar despite working as the top lawyer for one of the world's largest banks, where she made $22.5 million last year.

Obviously no lawyer is actually worth $22.5 million per year. She's being paid for political influence. She's a fixer. She knows what officials to call when you need a favor or you're in a jam. That's why she was "friends" with Jeffrey Epstein.

And I do not believe that her "friendship" was uncompensated.

I think, based on this revelation, that The Walls Are Really Closing In on Trump now.

posted by Ace at 06:45 PM

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