[GRADE A2 -- EFTA01787689 + EFTA02668134 (Epstein's seized email)]
On November 29, 2016 -- three weeks after the presidential election -- NYT financial reporter Landon Thomas Jr. emailed Jeffrey Epstein (jeevacation@gmail.com) with subject line "Mnuchin":
"How well do you know him? I have been ordered by higher ups to do a profile on him. Seems like he is going to get the big job. Casting about for people who know him..."
Epstein's initial response: "Oy"
Thomas followed up: "Would you say that Mnuchin and DJT are close? ie, do you think they have a relationship that goes back years?"
Epstein's final response: "Number?" -- requesting Thomas's phone number to continue the conversation off-email.
Steven Mnuchin (S&B Class of 1985) was announced as Treasury Secretary-designate on November 30, 2016 -- one day after this email chain. The NYT treated Epstein as a source with knowledge of Mnuchin's relationship with Trump.
Mnuchin's graph presence: 435 relationships, 30 fulltext document hits, 4 jmail emails (all from the Landon Thomas/Jeffrey E. chain), 0 Epstein flights, 1 CO_APPEARED_WITH Epstein record.
The email chain establishes that Epstein was considered a knowledgeable source about Mnuchin by the New York Times as late as November 2016 -- years after his 2008 conviction and registration as a sex offender. Thomas's phrasing "ordered by higher ups" indicates institutional editorial direction, not a casual inquiry. Epstein's "Oy" reaction and request to move to phone suggests he recognized the sensitivity.
WHAT THIS SHOWS AND DOES NOT SHOW: The documents show the NYT contacted Epstein as a source about Mnuchin. They do NOT show Epstein had influence over Mnuchin's appointment or that any S&B connection was the basis for the contact. The connection appears to flow through New York financial circles, not through S&B institutional channels.