TBL Thinks: Trump vs Harvard
Dear Readers,
It’s Thinking Time! This week, we cover Trump versus Harvard and the government’s attempts to make the richest university in the US own up to its inability to adequately protect Jewish students. We explain how the move unexpectedly ties in with the larger agenda to revamp the American workforce.
TBL Thinks is our way to summarize the most important paywalled, longer reads relevant to global macroeconomics, helping you cut through the noise. With that in mind, please enjoy.
In the first 100 days of the new administration, pro-bitcoin rhetoric has turned into policy.
A new executive order established a national strategic bitcoin reserve and directed the Treasury and Commerce departments to explore growing the reserve within a budget-neutral framework.
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What new legislative and enforcement shifts mean for bitcoin’s future
How to position yourself before the window closes
Register for the June 3 event and read the full 100 Days Brief
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Smart macro analysts don’t just watch the Fed. They watch the world.
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Harvard Prepares for Battle
Harvard University has been in the news a lot lately, unfortunately, not for reasons it’s used to. The university has been facing the ire of our President, who first started talking about Harvard in March when his administration opened a review of nearly $9 billion in federal grants and contracts as part of its investigation into how schools have handled antisemitism. The administration’s review of Harvard’s funding came at the heels of the government canceling $400 million in grants and contracts for Columbia University, also over antisemitism concerns. Harvard was one amongst sixty universities warned of potential enforcement actions if they didn’t adequately protect Jewish students on campus—concerns arose after pro-Palestine protests took place on and disrupted campuses nationwide last year.
The Trump administration ended up cancelling $2.2 billion of federal funding in April and threatened to revoke the university’s tax-exempt status, writing on social media, “Remember, Tax Exempt Status is totally contingent on acting in the PUBLIC INTEREST!” The Trump administration task force on antisemitism wrote the school asking it to take actions, including a comprehensive mask ban as well as changes to governance, leadership, admissions, and an end to diversity, equity, and inclusion and related programs. The government also asked Harvard to make necessary changes to address bias, improve viewpoint diversity, and end ideological capture. The Harvard chapter of the American Association of University Professors subsequently sued the Trump administration in federal court, arguing that the administration is circumventing the usual ways of addressing antisemitism or other civil-rights issues.
Another part of the equation that the Trump administration is trying to address is the rather large foreign-student intake…and here’s why: