Columbia University Agrees to $200 Million Fine to Settle Fight With Trump

[Ms. Toad]

12. Look beyond the details of this situation.

The money going to Columbia is funding research in science, technology, and medicine. Critical areas which Trump is trying to defund across the board - especially for anyone or any institution which he doesn't like. Your money is not funding anti-semitism. It is funding critically needed research. It is funding training future scientists and doctors. To the extent that Columbia didn't act quickly enough or assertively enough with regard to student antisemitic actions, the solution is not to threaten to cripple the University. It is to work through the proper civil rights channels to determine and impose an appropriate punishment.

If you applaud him for defunding Columbia due to "allowing" antisemitism, then you also need to applaud him blocking law firms for representing his political appointments, or barring funding to fight California fires because he doesn't like their support of immigrants, or defunding schools because they allow trans women to play on women's sports teams, or stripping government contracts from companies which don't pay enough homage to the mango menace.

The executive branch has no business extorting universities, states, law firms, media to make them conform to his political views - even if one of the excuses he happens to use for the extortion happens to be one you agree with, because if you cheer it in one instance you cannot turn around and condemn the practice the many times uses it to gain conformance with the many views he holds which you don't agree with. And shame on any of those entities who cower to his threats.