In court filings, a previously undisclosed memo was revealed that called for massive changes to Harvard, the likes of which no university could agree.
Including:
A lien placed on all Harvard assets.
A federally-appointed provost to oversee departments "reform" efforts
A ban on student government
Placing certain departments under receivership.
and many other things.
More troubling was this line:
"But the memo cast those moves as only a beginning, presenting them as a baseline for more sweeping reforms."
I recommend people read the whole article, it's terrifying stuff reminiscent of Hitler's attacks on German universities so Nazis could push their ideology.
Before Sending April 11 Demands, Trump Administration Privately Floated an Aggressive Agenda to Harvard
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The four-page memo — which includes both a summary of internal changes Harvard had already made in response to antisemitism complaints and a wish list of future federal interventions — also laid out potential governance reforms designed to directly increase the Trump administration’s sway over Harvard’s leaders.
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While the April 3 letter was released publicly and laid out broad categories of institutional change, the accompanying internal memo — marked “Privileged and Confidential” — was not made public at the time. Instead, it was sent privately to Harvard’s legal team on April 3.
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Among the most significant measures floated in the memo are a proposed federal lien on all Harvard assets to guarantee compliance with any future settlement, the potential abolition of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences Faculty Council, and the appointment of a federally approved senior provost to oversee implementation of reforms to certain programs, which could alternatively be placed under receivership.
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“Install new leadership in problematic depts, same goals as CU,” the memo read.
That was not the only change that the Trump administration apparently sought to replicate from its campaign at Columbia. The memo also proposed using trademark law to penalize unrecognized student groups — like Harvard Out of Occupied Palestine, which staged the spring 2024 encampment — that use the Harvard name.
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https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2025/7/23/harvard-trump-memo/Here is the actual memo:
https://www.thecrimson.com/widget/2025/7/23/april-3-memo-to-harvard/
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