From Townhall
For most of our nation’s history, we did not have a Department of Defense. We had a Department of War. That name was not accidental. It reflected a clear understanding of purpose: the United States military exists to fight and win the nation’s wars. Not to mirror cultural trends. Not to absorb the ideological priorities of elite universities. Not to serve as a laboratory for social experimentation. Its mission is singular: to defend the United States of America and, when necessary, defeat those who threaten it.
Yet increasingly, American taxpayers are underwriting a military culture that appears shaped less by battlefield realities and more by the intellectual fashions of institutions like Harvard. Based on an overview of Harvard Kennedy School initiatives, the university maintains a wide range of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs embedded across its schools and fellowships. While this is something the Biden administration may have tolerated, the Trump administration is committed to ending this woke madness.
The Women and Public Policy Program promotes initiatives such as “Work and Gender Equity,” focused on “debiasing systems,” as well as research designed to advance gender equity in political participation. The Center for Public Leadership runs an Equity Fellowship recruiting students committed to “dismantling barriers to equity across society.” Even when offices are rebranded, such as renaming the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion to the Office of Community and Belonging, the core mission remains unchanged.
Harvard is free to pursue its priorities. It is a private institution with its own governing philosophy. The question is not whether Harvard can advance equity initiatives or host academic fellowships. The question is whether this woke university should be involved in any way with the Department of War. Hard-working American taxpayers expect security and strength, not their money to be going to a lefty university with a $60 billion endowment.