Los Angeles Olympics tainted by links between LA28 CEO and Jeffrey Epstein | Opinion

The proliferation of men in powerful positions with disgusting records of abuse has made it particularly hard to be a woman in America right now. Where we once could rely on public shame to invoke self-extradition from such situations, that’s clearly no longer the case.

In England, authorities arrested and questioned a member of British royal family, Prince Andrew, for his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

But in America, we watch name after powerful name — including President Donald Trump’s, more than a million times so far — appear in court documents containing evidence of Epstein’s crimes without even a hint of censure or legal prosecutions.

The whole Epstein affair of a billionaire who pled guilty to soliciting a minor for prostitution and then died facing federal charges of child trafficking, is a travesty of an American justice system failing to protect underage girls from rich and powerful men committing or accused of society’s most heinous crimes. Instead of being stopped or even shamed, Epstein was feted, coveted and protected by other rich and powerful people.

Where is the “perp walk” of shame for American cronies of Jeffrey Epstein? Here, they get to keep their big shot jobs, despite past sleazy behavior in Epstein’s orbit.

In California, Casey Wasserman, the lead organizer of the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, popped up recently in U.S. Justice Department documents showing he flew on Epstein’s private plane in 2003 and exchanged disturbingly flirty emails with Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s procuress who is currently serving 20 years in a Texas jail cell for sex trafficking and conspiracy.

While Wasserman has apologized, he’s leaned heavily on the public narrative that he only flew on Epstein’s private plane on a “humanitarian trip” to Africa with the Clinton Foundation. But a Wasserman email to Maxwell found in the Epstein files doesn’t exactly evoke a “humanitarian” mission to me: “I think of you all the time... what do I have to do to see you in a tight leather outfit?” Wasserman wrote in an email to Maxwell.

In another email, he asks Maxwell to “book a massage” with her, to which she replied: “Um — all that rubbing — are you sure you can take it? The thought frankly is leaving me a little breathless. There are a few spots that apparently drive a man wild.”

Standing by their man, the LA28 Olympic committee has publicly announced that it believes “Wasserman’s relationship with Epstein and Maxwell did not go beyond what has already been publicly documented.”

And so, Wasserman will remain chair of the nonprofit LA28 Olympic planning committee. For now.

But a number of high-profile clients of Wasserman’s talent agency, including popular singers Chappell Roan and Laufey, and retired U.S. women’s soccer player Abby Wambach, cut ties with Wasserman, thereby wielding their celebrity in the best possible way — to publicly shame a powerful man caught with his pants down.

In a tiny bit of comeuppance, over which I am feeling only the tiniest bit of schadenfreude, Wasserman announced last week he would be selling his talent agency. Goodness only knows how many millions he will personally pocket for that sale — a neat consolation prize.

Despite initially saying she would stay out of the fray, Los Angeles mayor Karen Bass has recently joined the small, but growing, throng of those calling for Wasserman’s removal from the Olympic committee. Bass told CNN last week that “the board made a decision. I think that decision was unfortunate. I don’t support the decision. I do think that we need to look at the leadership.”

Then on Wednesday, the Los Angeles County Legislative Delegation, composed of the 37 state senators and Assembly members who represent millions of Los Angeles County residents, also publicly called for Wasserman’s removal:

“Mr. Wasserman’s past personal conduct has become a distraction and LA28’s leadership must be singularly focused on ensuring a safe and successful games for athletes, spectators and visitors to Los Angeles from around the world,” said the delegation’s chair, Assemblymember Tina McKinnor, D-Inglewood, in a statement.

So perhaps the story isn’t quite as done and dusted as the LA28 committee would like?

In a just world, Wasserman would step down from chairing the committee because he’s realized the public can no longer trust him to direct more than $7 billion to host the 2028 Olympics and Paralympics.

But as we’ve learned repeatedly lately, we don’t live in a just world, or even a particularly just state. Powerful men find soft landings when they stumble. Wasserman still might scrape by despite the opposition of celebrities, a mayor, and state representatives.

It’s already a shame that the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles will take place under a Trump presidency, something many Californians dread,

Californians also shouldn’t want anyone tied to the Epstein files or Ghislaine Maxwell to represent us, our talent or our values.

Wasserman is an embarrassment to himself and to California.

This story was originally published February 21, 2026 at 5:00 AM.