The American Economic Association (AEA) has banned Larry Summers, a former Treasury Secretary, from all events, speaking roles, and journal contributions for life because of his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. This decision comes after it was revealed that Summers had emailed Epstein for personal advice, which led to widespread criticism for breaking professional standards of honesty.
The AEA gave the famous economist Summers the John Bates Clark Medal in 1993. He was Treasury Secretary under President Bill Clinton and later president of Harvard University. Recent House committee reports revealed that they made rude comments and asked for romantic advice in their communications. This made Summers very ashamed and he stepped back from public life last month.
As a result, Summers has stepped down from the board of OpenAI and is no longer teaching at Harvard while a review is going on. The AEA’s statement makes it clear that his actions hurt the trust that economics mentors are supposed to have, which is why the ban went into effect right away after he resigned. This scandal is a big blow to one of the most important people in the US economy.
