Why the Administration is Challenging Academia

This post, which could be called the third leg on the aggression stool, looks at why the administration is going after academia. The other two targets “featured” at Vote This Time are the judiciary and the media.

The Trump administration clearly took on lawyers and reporters because intimidating them into silence – or at least moderating their voices – makes its job easier. The best defense is a good offense. A fractured media would mean a less knowledgeable public and weakened law firms would make it easier for the administration to push the envelope.

There seems to be another — or perhaps additional — element to going after academia. MAGA is anti-intellectual. Poking its finger in the eyes of the Columbias and Harvards of the world can be seen as Trump keeping faith with his base. The point was made by The New York Times:  

…Conservatives have looked askance at the elite echelons of higher education for decades, disturbed by affirmative action admissions programs, high tuition costs, the views of liberal professors and the proliferation of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives on campuses.

Snip

The Trump administration has expanded its list of complaints about Harvard to touch on a variety of conservative complaints with academia. It has, for example, argued that there’s a lack of viewpoint diversity among faculty members, and it has accused the school of still considering race in admissions in violation of a Supreme Court ruling.

Columbia folded in March. Like some of the media companies and law firms, decision-makers decided that kowtowing to Trump is a bitter pill that has to be swallowed, ritual humiliation and all.

And humiliating it is. The story characterized it as acquiescing to “an extraordinary ultimatum.”

Harvard is fighting the good fight, but it may be that the hard and soft power of the presidency simply is overwhelming.

 

Trump’s relationship with his base is evolving. On one hand, he is not running for office again and therefore doesn’t need them to come out to vote for him. Most of Trump’s domestic agenda was squeezed into the OBBBA. He seems to be very comfortable ruling by executive order. Again, no base needed. This freedom may be a reason he bombed Iran and add $3 trillion to the deficit, both clearly actions decried by MAGA.

The worm may be turning again. The fight against pedophilia is MAGA’s origin story. Of course, the monsters were the Democrats. If it becomes clearer that Trump was a participant and/or financial beneficiary of Epstein’s crimes, the base would turn against him with fury.  Trump is a shrewd politician and likely finds the criticism from allies such as Joe Rogan and Nick Fuentes to be frightening canaries in the coal mine. The MAGA reaction to the administrations dissembling on the Epstein files likely fueled the predictable attacks on HRC, Obama, Biden, James Comey and John Brennan.

In addition to these go-to targets, it wouldn’t be surprising if Trump amps up attacks on colleges and universities as a way to re-energize his base–or at least keep it from fully turning on him.     

Huge dislocation of three pillars of a society – media, the legal system and higher education – should concern us all. There is one step everyone can take to help stop this: Vote.