From Epstein to Bezos, the Ruling Class Is Rotten to the Core
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Society
/ February 6, 2026
From Epstein to Bezos, the Ruling Class Is Rotten to the Core
Let this week be yet another reminder that plutocrats are a threat to democracy, not its saviors.
Jeet Heer
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Jeffrey Epstein and Jeff Bezos.
(Rick Friedman / Corbis via Getty Images; Miguel J. Rodriguez Carrillo / AFP via Getty Images))
The release last Friday by the Department of Justice of roughly 3 million documents relating to the investigation of the late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein has created a bizarre blame game among billionaires. Epstein was able to commit unspeakable crimes on a mass scale for decades with only a slap-on-the-wrist punishment because he was rich and well-connected. The new files help flesh out our sense of his social world, which was top-heavy with plutocrats such as the current commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick (who had earlier lied about the extent of his relationship with Epstein), Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates (whose marriage to his former wife Melinda was destroyed in large part by his relationship with Epstein), PayPal cofounder Peter Thiel, LinkedIn cofounder Reid Hoffman, and Tesla CEO Elon Musk (who, like Lutnick, had been deceptive about how often he interacted with Epstein).
These men all had relationships with Epstein after his 2008 conviction and jailing for sex trafficking minors; some also had deep business or philanthropic ties to Epstein. Now that these sordid ties are finally coming back to haunt them, oligarchs are franctically throwing Epstein-related stones at each other from within their respective glass houses. When Hoffman posted on X (the social-media site owned by Musk), “We should focus on prosecuting those who committed crimes and finally getting justice for the victims.” Musk sarcastically responded, “While you’re at it, maybe you can help OJ ‘find the real killer’.” Hoffman shot back with a screenshot of a 2012 e-mail where Musk asked Epstein about visiting his private island, a missive that included this query: “What day/night will be the wildest party on your island?”
The tawdry exchange between Hoffman and Musk has all the emotional maturity of kindergarten kids accusing each other of having the cooties. In truth, none of those in Epstein’s social circle should escape culpability, since, even if they committed no crimes themselves, they were, at the very least, tolerant of Epstein’s vileness.
The Epstein files are a window into the world of the financial and political elite. What emerges from this window is an ugly sight. Epstein’s coterie transcended normal political divides. Gates and Hoffman are centrist liberals who tend …
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From Epstein to Bezos, the Ruling Class Is Rotten to the Core
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Current Issue
Society
/ February 6, 2026
From Epstein to Bezos, the Ruling Class Is Rotten to the Core
Let this week be yet another reminder that plutocrats are a threat to democracy, not its saviors.
Jeet Heer
Share
Copy Link
X (Twitter)
Bluesky Pocket
Edit
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Jeffrey Epstein and Jeff Bezos.
(Rick Friedman / Corbis via Getty Images; Miguel J. Rodriguez Carrillo / AFP via Getty Images))
The release last Friday by the Department of Justice of roughly 3 million documents relating to the investigation of the late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein has created a bizarre blame game among billionaires. Epstein was able to commit unspeakable crimes on a mass scale for decades with only a slap-on-the-wrist punishment because he was rich and well-connected. The new files help flesh out our sense of his social world, which was top-heavy with plutocrats such as the current commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick (who had earlier lied about the extent of his relationship with Epstein), Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates (whose marriage to his former wife Melinda was destroyed in large part by his relationship with Epstein), PayPal cofounder Peter Thiel, LinkedIn cofounder Reid Hoffman, and Tesla CEO Elon Musk (who, like Lutnick, had been deceptive about how often he interacted with Epstein).
These men all had relationships with Epstein after his 2008 conviction and jailing for sex trafficking minors; some also had deep business or philanthropic ties to Epstein. Now that these sordid ties are finally coming back to haunt them, oligarchs are franctically throwing Epstein-related stones at each other from within their respective glass houses. When Hoffman posted on X (the social-media site owned by Musk), “We should focus on prosecuting those who committed crimes and finally getting justice for the victims.” Musk sarcastically responded, “While you’re at it, maybe you can help OJ ‘find the real killer’.” Hoffman shot back with a screenshot of a 2012 e-mail where Musk asked Epstein about visiting his private island, a missive that included this query: “What day/night will be the wildest party on your island?”
The tawdry exchange between Hoffman and Musk has all the emotional maturity of kindergarten kids accusing each other of having the cooties. In truth, none of those in Epstein’s social circle should escape culpability, since, even if they committed no crimes themselves, they were, at the very least, tolerant of Epstein’s vileness.
The Epstein files are a window into the world of the financial and political elite. What emerges from this window is an ugly sight. Epstein’s coterie transcended normal political divides. Gates and Hoffman are centrist liberals who tend …
From Epstein to Bezos, the Ruling Class Is Rotten to the Core
Who's accountable for the results?
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From Epstein to Bezos, the Ruling Class Is Rotten to the Core
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Magazine
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Current Issue
Society
/ February 6, 2026
From Epstein to Bezos, the Ruling Class Is Rotten to the Core
Let this week be yet another reminder that plutocrats are a threat to democracy, not its saviors.
Jeet Heer
Share
Copy Link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
Bluesky Pocket
Email
Edit
Ad Policy
Jeffrey Epstein and Jeff Bezos.
(Rick Friedman / Corbis via Getty Images; Miguel J. Rodriguez Carrillo / AFP via Getty Images))
The release last Friday by the Department of Justice of roughly 3 million documents relating to the investigation of the late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein has created a bizarre blame game among billionaires. Epstein was able to commit unspeakable crimes on a mass scale for decades with only a slap-on-the-wrist punishment because he was rich and well-connected. The new files help flesh out our sense of his social world, which was top-heavy with plutocrats such as the current commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick (who had earlier lied about the extent of his relationship with Epstein), Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates (whose marriage to his former wife Melinda was destroyed in large part by his relationship with Epstein), PayPal cofounder Peter Thiel, LinkedIn cofounder Reid Hoffman, and Tesla CEO Elon Musk (who, like Lutnick, had been deceptive about how often he interacted with Epstein).
These men all had relationships with Epstein after his 2008 conviction and jailing for sex trafficking minors; some also had deep business or philanthropic ties to Epstein. Now that these sordid ties are finally coming back to haunt them, oligarchs are franctically throwing Epstein-related stones at each other from within their respective glass houses. When Hoffman posted on X (the social-media site owned by Musk), “We should focus on prosecuting those who committed crimes and finally getting justice for the victims.” Musk sarcastically responded, “While you’re at it, maybe you can help OJ ‘find the real killer’.” Hoffman shot back with a screenshot of a 2012 e-mail where Musk asked Epstein about visiting his private island, a missive that included this query: “What day/night will be the wildest party on your island?”
The tawdry exchange between Hoffman and Musk has all the emotional maturity of kindergarten kids accusing each other of having the cooties. In truth, none of those in Epstein’s social circle should escape culpability, since, even if they committed no crimes themselves, they were, at the very least, tolerant of Epstein’s vileness.
The Epstein files are a window into the world of the financial and political elite. What emerges from this window is an ugly sight. Epstein’s coterie transcended normal political divides. Gates and Hoffman are centrist liberals who tend …
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