As a Harvard Kennedy School graduate and current research fellow, I've watched with growing unease as my university squares off against the Trump administration. What began as demands to address antisemitism has escalated into a high-stakes battle where Jewish interests risk becoming collateral damage.

I feel torn, caught between two truths and two failures.

The Trump administration’s letter to Harvard included demands which, on their face, were reasonable: combat antisemitism, eliminate discrimination, ensure that students and faculty are chosen based on merit, reform curricula with histories of anti-Jewish and anti-Israel bias and take a hard line on support for terrorism. As an Israeli-American Jew within the Harvard community, I recognize these as valid issues requiring attention.

Yet the manner of intervention — threatening Harvard's tax-exempt status and demanding sweeping control over university operations — constitutes government overreach that should alarm anyone committed to academic freedom and civil independence. If Trump’s threat were to materialize, it would have deeply damaging consequences.

By that logic,........

© The Hill