Goldman Sachs’ top lawyer Kathy Ruemmler signed emails to Jeffrey Epstein with “xoxo” and wished him a happy birthday — prompting a crude joke from the disgraced financier about naming his penis, newly released Justice Department documents show.
Ruemmler, who served as White House counsel under then-President Barack Obama before becoming Goldman’s chief legal officer, emailed Epstein on his 62nd birthday in 2015: “I hope you enjoy the day with your one true love :-)”
Epstein replied: “they say that men usually gvie [sic] a name to their penis, as [it] would be inappropriate to make love to a total stranger.”
Ruemmler, who exchanged thousands of emails with Epstein in the years between his 2008 conviction for procuring a minor and before the extent of his alleged sex crimes came to light in 2019, mockingly shot back: “Hard to believe that there is still an open question about whether men are [the] inferior gender.”
Jennifer Connelly, a spokesperson for Ruemmler, told The Post: “Ms. Ruemmler has done nothing wrong and has nothing to hide. Nothing in the record suggests otherwise.”
The latest batch of emails show that Ruemmler helped Epstein coordinate a response when ABC News was preparing a segment on “Good Morning America” featuring one of his accusers, Virginia Roberts Giuffre.
Giuffre had alleged that Epstein and his friend Ghislaine Maxwell sexually abused her and trafficked her to other powerful men.
In one email from April 2015, Ruemmler wrote to Epstein that Giuffre’s “fantastical claims are — on their face — not credibl= .” (Apparent typos in the files, including the case above in which an an “=” is substituted for an “e,” are reportedly the result of transcription errors in the DOJ’s rushed processing of the trove of Epstein files.)
In another email chain, Ruemmler asked Epstein if Maxwell would give a statement to ABC News.
Epstein wrote back: “her lawyer provided a long winded letter t= counsel. she will do as you suggest howver.”
In an email dated April 23, 2015, Ruemmler wrote: “Some suggested edits in the red-line attached.” The attachment was not included in the Justice Department’s document release.
The emails show Epstein offering to fly Ruemmler to his private island in the Caribbean.
In a January 16, 2017 message, Epstein wrote: “If you like , i can have a pl=ne pick you guys up in st lucia on sat , fly you to the island. =nbsp; and you can go home from there on sunday , if it is not too much trav=l.?!”
Ruemmler replied: “Off the grid all day with t=e tobacco farmers in NC. 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?”
Days later, the two exchanged messages about a Daily Mail article reporting that former President Barack Obama had visited Richard Branson’s private island.
“Should we invite him to meet you and lisa on my isla=d saturday. . ?” Epstein wrote, adding in another message that his island was “Much nicer than bransons. . more private=as well.”
Ruemmler responded: “If that came out, it would really be a scandal! Can you =magine what the Daily Mail would do?”
Epstein later wrote: “What time sunday. My plane will be there.”
“10:30?” Ruemmler replied.
In another message, Epstein wrote: “im planning on p=cking you up sun as early as you like,” referencing a copy of her passport.
The visit does not appear to have taken place. On January 28, 2017, Epstein wrote: “I fully understand lisa position. . not wrong.”
Ruemmler replied: “Yeah – still too much risk in the air.”
Separately, the emails show Ruemmler seeking Epstein’s input on career decisions.
In October 2014, months after leaving the Obama White House, she sent him a draft public statement declining further consideration for the position of US attorney general and asked for feedback.
In July 2018, she emailed Epstein a draft note she intended to send to Facebook executive Sheryl Sandberg following a meeting.
In March 2019, Epstein wrote to her: “i also prefer you to be clean from me when dealing with faceboo=.”
“Jeffrey Epstein was a man of a thousand faces,” Connelly told The Post in a statement.
“Ms. Ruemmler only saw the one he put on to win people over and gain credibility and acceptance. Her views were shaped by that and his denials of any wrongdoing other than what he had pled guilty to years prior.”
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,” Connelly said.
“At times, Epstein sought informal advice, and she provided feedback based on her understanding at the time, without any formal involvement.”
