Obama lawyer slammed for claiming Epstein victim’s allegations ‘lacked credibility’
Poppy Tree
washington: Virginia Giuffre’s family has lashed out at a prominent US Democratic lawyer who claimed the Jeffrey Epstein victim was “inherently not trustworthy.”
Kathryn Ruemmler, who served as White House adviser to former US president Barack Obama, told Congress she thought Giuffre’s sex trafficking allegations lacked sufficient detail.
“Based on my experience as a former prosecutor and a defense attorney, I believe there are allegations that inherently lack credibility,” Ruemmler said in closed-door testimony given earlier this month and released Wednesday (Washington time).
“Usually when someone tells me there’s sex trafficking, they’re saying who, when, where, not multiple world leaders, but multiple foreign presidents.”
Giuffre’s family reacted strongly to the remarks, saying Ruemmler was “the only person who lacks credibility.”
Giuffre’s sister, Sky Roberts, and her wife, Amanda Roberts, who committed suicide last year, accused the Goldman Sachs lawyer of “trying to make people believe that she did not know that Jeffrey Epstein was actively involved in sex trafficking.”
“Attempting to cast doubt on Virginia, whose courage was the reason so many survivors came forward and more than 50 people were forced to resign their positions of power, is reprehensible. She should be ashamed of herself,” they said in a statement.
“Kathy Ruemmler enriched herself while girls and young women suffered and their lives were ruined because she gave opportunity to her abusers. Shame on Goldman Sachs for keeping her in this job.”
Giuffre triggered the royal crisis in 2015 after accusing Epstein and his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell of smuggling her to London in 2001 to have sex with then-prince Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.
In his memoirs he claimed: Nobody’s DaughterPublished posthumously last October, it emerged that she had sex with Mountbatten-Windsor three times when she was 17. The former prince vehemently denies the allegations.
Giuffre also accused Epstein of subjecting her to years of physical and sexual abuse after Maxwell hired her in 2000, when she was 16 and working at Donald Trump’s Florida resort Mar-a-Lago.
She alleged that Epstein also took her shopping for sex with his high-flying friends, who included, among others, French model scout Jean-Luc Brunel, who died in his cell in 2022 while awaiting sex trafficking charges.
Ruemmler told Congress’ House Oversight Committee that he “hasn’t seen any evidence that points to that.” [Epstein] He said that he “harassed women or girls” but later realized that he was a “master liar”.
She also acknowledged in testimony made public Wednesday that she accepted gifts from Epstein and exchanged “sometimes disrespectful” emails with him during their six-year friendship.
The lawyer resigned as Goldman Sachs’ legal chief last month after details of his relationship with the sex offender emerged and he was paid a salary of US$25 million a year. He remains a temporary consultant at the investment bank.
Ruemmler is one of several high-profile figures who have voluntarily testified to Congress in recent months as part of the investigation into Epstein, including Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and, most recently, former Barclays CEO Jes Staley.
The House Oversight Committee is seeking testimony from Todd Blanche, whose candidacy for U.S. attorney general sparked fierce backlash from Epstein’s victims.
They allege that he mishandled the release of the Epstein files by poorly redacting names and contact information (a task assigned to him as an assistant U.S. attorney) and failing to release the full cache of documents.
Last summer, Blanche also interviewed Maxwell, who was convicted in 2021 of sex trafficking charges related to Epstein and sentenced to 20 years in prison.
A week after his meeting with Blanche, he was transferred from a federal prison in Florida to a minimum security camp in Texas.
This led to concerns among the victims that Maxwell might eventually be pardoned by the presidency.
The U.S. Senate voted unanimously Wednesday to oppose such a move. The resolution, submitted by Jacky Rosen, a Democratic senator from Nevada, stated that Maxwell “should not be granted a presidential pardon or any pardon for her crimes with Jeffrey Epstein regarding the sexual exploitation and abuse of minors.”
The resolution stated: “The Senate stands with victims of sexual exploitation and human trafficking and affirms its commitment to justice, accountability, and the protection of children.”
Republicans refused to object to the non-binding and largely symbolic move, effectively allowing it to become law.
A spokesman for Ruemmler told London: Telegram: “As Ms. Ruemmler told the committee, she had no knowledge of any ongoing criminal activity by Epstein and there was not a shred of evidence to suggest otherwise.
“Ms. Ruemmler would never condone criminal activity of any kind, and if she had seen or heard anything to suggest that Epstein was harming women or girls, she would have taken action to stop it.”
If you or anyone you know needs support you can contact the National Sexual Assault, Domestic and Family Violence Advisory Service on 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732), Lifeline 131 114 or Beyond Blue 1300 224 636.
Telegraph, London
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