President Trump delivered the opening speech to West Point on Saturday – while the attacks on his administration against Harvard University are continuing.
Ayesha Rascoe, host:
President Trump gave the opening speech to West Point yesterday, praising the increase in defense money and the GOP spending bill.
(Soundbit of archived registration)
President Donald Trump: Military budget of a Billion de dollars, general. Do you know that? – A Billion. Some people say, could you reduce it? I said, I don’t cut 10 cents. There is something else that we can cut. We can cut many others.
Rascoe: Trump also praised graduate cadets, even stressing Rhodes researchers among them. It was only days after its administration has accelerated attacks on another higher education institution – Harvard. Let us take into account the national political correspondent of the NPR, Mara Liasson. Hi, Mara.
Mara Liasson, byline: Hi, Ayesha.
RASCOE: The president therefore praises West Point scholars, but he also tries to revoke Harvard’s ability to register international students. And then at 12:51 pm today, Trump also posted, why Harvard does not say that almost 31% of their students come from foreign land – the emphasis on foreign land – continuing, we want these names and these countries. What do you do with that?
Liasson: Well, the ostensible reason for which the administration says that it is, it is because Harvard and other institutions did not do enough to fight against anti -Semitism. The president also reduces billions of dollars in research funding that goes to Harvard. He tries to get rid of the Harvard tax exemption status, and he also wants to make Harvard and other universities pay a much higher endowment tax.
Now, his opponents say the way of seeing these attacks on elite institutions – not only universities like Harvard, but law firms and cultural institutions and non -profit organizations – is that he wants to dominate all the institutions he considers potentially to oppose him. He sees universities – elite universities – as incubators of liberal voters.
And, you know, in 2016, Trump said, after the Nevada primary, when he was shooting in the different groups he had won, citing how well he had done well with very educated and badly educated, he said, I like educated evil. So maybe this is a clue.
Rascoe: Well, is it something-is this a kind of presidential bending, like pressure for executive power, whatever the constitution? Harvard described the president’s actions a blatant violation of the first amendment.
Liasson: right. Well, we will know if it’s true or not. You know, Trump’s opponents say that Trump cuts money for research – whether in Harvard or NIH, or prohibit the best and most brilliant students in the world from coming to the United States to be educated and then start world class companies, as they have done – is only a great gift for China, which already takes place in the United States in technology and manufacturing. We know that if these cuts pass, they will even reach a university with an endowment as large as Harvard. But what we don’t know is if the Supreme Court will allow at the end of this.
Rascoe: Mara, President Trump a sort of crowned last week with a few publications on social networks on prices, and the markets reacted. Like, what’s going on with that?
Liasson: Well, Trump returned to his previous scheme of conduct of commercial policy on social networks. And for a while, the markets had relaxed. It seemed to put the commercial negotiation portfolio to the Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. But now Trump is back at these chaotic and threading prices one day, prices of the other. He said he wanted 25% prices on Apple if they don’t start to do their iPhones in the United States. Apple said it would be difficult, if not impossible, and this would increase the price of phones greater than $ 2,000. He also recommends a 50% rate against the EU from June, and that sent markets, as you said, in a tizzy as they have done in the past. But what we have learned is that the only person in charge of trade policy is Donald Trump.
Rascoe: And there was news about former Biden president last week – right? – Dominate the news?
Liasson: It’s true. He did it. He has a cancer diagnosis just at the same time as a book goes out by alleging that his staff covered his physical and mental decline. But then Trump resumed the account of the media, as he often does, with the dressing of the South African president in the oval office, repeating underestimated accusations of white genocide in South Africa and, of course, these major rates.
Rascoe: And very quickly, what is your opinion on the GOP tax and expenditure bill that has just passed the house?
Liasson: Well, it was a big victory for Trump. He showed his solid grip in rock on the republican party. Now, this bill goes to the Senate, which will want to make changes. But it is certain that this bill on tax reduction will become part A in the mid-term elections. He is biased at the rich with Medicaid cups, and the Democrats and the Republicans think that the policy of this bill will operate for them mid-term.
Rascoe: It’s Mara Liasson de NPR. Thank you so much.
Liasson: Thank you.
Copyright © 2025 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website Conditions of use And authorisation pages www.npr.org For more information.
The accuracy and availability of NPR transcriptions may vary. The transcription text can be revised to correct errors or match audio updates. Audio on npr.org can be published after its original broadcast or publication. The file authorizing the NPR programming is the audio recording.