By Michael Leppert
The Indiana Citizen
May 28, 2025
In the 1983 classic film, “Trading Places,” Louis Winthorpe III and Billy Ray Valentine are victims of a scientific experiment that is thrust upon them by the elite bosses of a Philadelphia commodities brokerage. Winthorpe is a young, snobby broker at the firm, with all the right credentials and upbringing. He is comprehensively replaced by Valentine, a streetwise but uneducated nobody. The amateur sociological experiment aimed to prove that environment is more predictive than genetics in determining personal success or failure.
After the switch, Winthorpe spots Valentine wearing the clothes he once owned, specifically his Harvard tie. Only the cream of the crop, the elites among the elite are worthy of wearing the school’s crest. An enraged Winthorpe exclaims, “Like oh sure, he went to Harvard!”
I used to repeat the line out loud anytime I saw Harvard gear being worn by anyone, anywhere–especially to friends who actually did go to school there. It used to be fun.
In 2025, Donald Trump is trying to destroy arguably our most reputable institution of higher education based on his “claims that Harvard has failed to stamp out antisemitism on campus,” as reported by NPR’s Steve Inskeep, in the Morning Edition on Tuesday.
It’s nonsense of course.
Pretend for a moment that a specific ground zero of all American antisemitism actually existed. Where would that place be? I might look at the places flying Nazi or Confederate flags. I might look at the places where historic hostilities toward minorities of any kind thrive. I might look where hate crimes are being committed and civil rights are under threat.
Trump has chosen to look at Harvard, a university with a Jewish population among undergraduates of approximately 26%, according to Hillel International. That’s where the MAGA crowd believes antisemitism needs thwarted. More importantly, they believe the make-believe crisis is worthy of annihilating one of the world’s most respected institutions to solve it.
Again, it’s all nonsense. No one actually believes any of this. However, Trump’s supporters love destroying things. The destruction of our global reputation, the U.S. Capitol, the rule of law, etc. are proof of that. Damn the consequences, they primarily enjoy burning stuff down.
For example, Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita is copy-catting his idol by taking after the University of Notre Dame for similarly vacuous reasons.
In the case of Harvard, there is no reasonable justification for its destruction. The president simply hates the school. There are a few wild theories as to why this is true, but no question about whether or not it is.
One theory is that the president’s youngest son, Barron, was rejected in his application for admission there. As of this writing, this theory has not been confirmed. Rumors abound that Columbia and Stanford rejected him as well. Columbia has already been creamed by the president, and if I were the boss at Stanford, I would be preparing for the worst.
A competing theory that is as sinister and petty: that President Barack Obama, former first lady Michelle Obama and one of their daughters, Malia, all graduated from the school. Even Obama’s father has a master’s degree in economics from Harvard. These are facts, but they may not be Trump’s reason.
More likely though is that when Trump’s initial bullying of the school led to the university suing instead of acquiescing, it made the old man mad. This is important because this is a measurable and consistent pattern for this president in every arena he enters. Name the arena and Trump has bullied someone in it.
Last week’s announcement from Kristi Noem, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that her agency would prohibit the school from admitting international students is nothing more than an escalation in that bullying. There’s of course no precedent or justification for it. It’s just a desperate act of a bully whose bullying isn’t working.
Harvard is an American treasure that needs Americans right now. Not to protect the Winthorpes of the world, but to protect something far more valuable to America: our nation’s creation of knowledge.
When I started my graduate work as a student in 2019, I had been a pro in my field of study for more than two decades. I began teaching that same year. Yes, an avalanche of academia fell on me all at once. Six years later, the person writing this column is incredibly more knowledgeable than the naïve, yet spry, 51-year-old I was way back then.
One of my professors at the elite university I attended asked me what I thought the purpose of a university was. I replied, “To teach.” He said, “No, it’s to create knowledge.”
That’s what Harvard does. That’s what America once did.
But to Trump, knowledge is the enemy. Ironically, knowledge is also the thing that ultimately will destroy Trumpism. With or without the Harvard tie.
Michael Leppert is an author, educator and a communication consultant in Indianapolis. He writes about government, politics and culture at MichaelLeppert.com. The views and opinions expressed are those of the author only and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Indiana Citizen or any other affiliated organization.
