Beltway Insider: Trump/Harvard, US Attorney/Russia, FSU Shooting, Sanders/AOC, AP Ban, Easter

Details

Category: Beltway Insider

Published on Sunday, 20 April 2025 05:04

Written by Janet Walker

President Trump resorted to his usual squeeze tactics this week, as he attempted to force Harvard University to bow to his demands to initiate a series a policy changes that would in essence revamp the entirety of the University.

The President's job approval rating, according to The New York Times for the period ending April 20, 2025,  shows an approval rating according to YouGov at 41% of those polled who approve of his effectiveness as President and those who disapprove of his effectiveness as president increased by 1% to 54%. A slight 3% of the population polled have no opinion. Ratings are calculated weekly.

Beltway Insider: Trump/Tariffs, China, Tech Exceptions, Menendez Brothers, Bernie Sanders, Boston Brothel, Prada/Versace

Trump Squeezes as Harvard Reject Trump Offer

After successfully securing a concession by Columbia University, the Trump Administration moved on Harvard University, the oldest university in the nation, and presented to Dr. Alan Garber the President of Harvard, a five page letter outlining the expected changes.

However, Harvard, which is one of the wealthiest universities, decided to turn down the request.

"No government — regardless of which party is in power — should dictate what private universities can teach, whom they can admit and hire, and which areas of study and inquiry they can pursue," Harvard's president, Alan M. Garber, wrote in an open letter on Monday," reported The New York Times.

As expected the Trump administration immediately froze $2.2 billion in federal funding and another $7 billion is under investigation. Moreover, the university, which enjoys a tax-exempt status, has been threatened with revocation.

The letter which can be read here, accuses of the university of failing to live up to "intellectual and civil rights conditions that justify federal investment." Divided into ten areas, the letter sighed by Acting General Counsel for the Department of Health and Human Services, Sean R. Keveney, Commission of the Federal Acquisition Services, John Gruenbaum, and Acting General Counsel U.S. Department of Education Thomas E. Wheeler, proposed deep changes to the hiring process for faculty and staff as well as proposing merit based admissions, and international admissions reform.

In addition to the university was to submit to an audit. "This audit shall begin no later than the summer of 2025 and shall proceed on a department-by-department, field-by-field, or teaching-unit-by-teaching-unit basis as appropriate. The report of the external party shall be submitted to University leadership and the federal government no later than the end of 2025. Harvard must abolish all criteria, preferences, and practices, whether mandatory or optional, throughout its admissions and hiring practices, that function as ideological litmus tests."

The letter continues with an extensive section on reforming programs with Egregious Records of Antisemitism or other Bias.

President Trump has perfected the squeeze play, crushing his opponents resolve, by withholding money, a common abuse tactic. He may have met his match with Harvard University, however, in all likelihood, Harvard may find a way to negotiate a more peaceful and less alienating compromise or dig in, determined to remain a university free from government oversight.

"Even for the world's richest university, which has an endowment of about $53 billion, a lasting freeze would cut deeply into labs, departments and even classrooms. But officials at Harvard elected to prize its reputation, independence and legacy, wagering that the institution could outlast Mr. Trump's crusade," reported The New York Times.

World News: War or Peace – Netanyahu and Putin Show True Colors

U.S. Attorney Nominee Has Cozy Ties to Russia

Interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, Ed Martin is facing backlash over more than 150 undisclosed appearances on Russia media which is poised to derail the conservative's nomination for the office.  

"Martin has posed a challenge for the Senate Judiciary Committee, not only because of his lack of experience as a prosecutor or trial lawyer but also because of the volume of his statements on social media and in traditional media, and the unusual extent of his omissions. Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) said Thursday that Martin has received more than 500 questions from senators, far more than normal," reported The Washington Post.

Another surprise in Martin's past is the more than 150 omissions of appearances on Russian State television network RT America and Sputnik in which he frequently sided with assessments of Russian politics, propagated disinformation on the build up of Russian Troops at the Ukraine border in 2022 and further propagates the stolen election theory and has refused to acknowledge the 2016 Russian interference. A hardline Trumpian, Martin appears to align himself with the president's project 2025 agenda.

A U.S. attorney is chosen by the president and so depending on the political party during any term, these nominees will traditionally represent the same party values. Each nominee requires a Senate vote. During the initial vetting process, the Senate Judiciary committee will send the nominee a questionnaire, along the traditional job interview questions, U.S. attorney will be required to be forthright in their responses.

The nomination process has a time limit, and for Martin if he is not confirmed by May 20, 2025, his nomination will expire. With a trifecta government, Democrats are pushing back hard on Martin, wanting the Republicans to determine is he worth the effort to appease the president. When the game of the day in Washington is Trump politics, loyalists are easy to find and finding an interim U.S. Attorney that, at minimum, appears to have the legal credentials to head the office and is loyal to the Project 2025 agenda the President is advancing shouldn't be that difficult.

Money News: Understanding Tariffs and Their Impact on Americans

Florida State University Shooter

Parsing the deaths of two, Robert Morales and Tiru Chabba, and the injury of six others, on the Florida State University Tallahassee campus, students gathered around a makeshift memorial covered with bouquet of flowers, wrapped in plastic six deep, trying to comprehend the harsh reality of the irreparable severing of life, as they had known it.

"[Robert] Morales was the university's dining coordinator and one of the founders of Gordos Cuban Cuisine in Tallahassee; [Tiru] Chabba, visiting from South Carolina, was the regional vice president for Aramark Collegiate Hospitality, the food service provider for the university," reported The Tallahassee Democrat.

The following day, a vigil held for the survivors, the victims, and the deceased, showed the resilience of the student body, as thousands stood in the afternoon sun listening as the University's president spoke. The words were what they were, attempts to verbalize the tragedy, to unite the students, comfort the hurting, and the students who have grown accustomed to reports of mass shootings in other places, some nearby, were already united, and showed up in mass, to listen and draw strength from their peers.

While the shooter took lives, and his actions shattered the peace and security of this community, these students, and leaders of tomorrow, who have seen too many mass shootings, and endured too many accounts of tragedies that could have been prevented, did not take their resolve.

Coronavirus Total

At the order of the President of the United States, the U.S. no longer recognizes the value of The World Health Organization. The CDC has recommended every person from age six months, including senior citizens should receive at least one shot of an updated COVID-19 vaccine, annually.  The death toll from Covid-19 has dramatically decreased, as has transmission of the virus. Even as confirmed new cases continue each week, fewer are dying from the newer variants.

For the seven days ending April 20, 2025, the total number of confirmed coronavirus cases reported by the World Health Organization remained constant at 777,691,501. The total worldwide death toll also remained constant 7,093,267 deaths. The United States has stopped providing Covid data to the World Health Organization. (Data updated March 30, 2025, from the World Health Organization).

Money News: Effective Investment Strategies During a Recession

Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Draw Big Crowds

The Spring Break tour of Bernie Sanders, 83, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, 35, has become a surprise hit as the pair, have generated a groundswell of hope across the western states drawing big crowds, 36,000 in Los Angeles, 30,000 in Denver, 30, 000 in Sacramento, across states which are solid blue.

The dynamic duo decided to venture into deeply red Idaho and were surprised at the size of the swelling crowd of 12,000, which was the second largest democratic crowd since the time Barack Obama showed up.

Sanders has always been a hit with the disenfranchised voter, his progressive views on healthcare for all, fighting against the billionaires, and environmental issues resonate with voters from Vermont. What is happening now, is the same disenfranchised voters, those who invested in both Trump and Kamala Harris, each have seen their beliefs deeply destroyed, and with Trump, their government is being actively shredded by a few, who hold the president's attention. His campaign words disavowing knowledge of Project 2025, which has now become his agenda, and is being enacted page by page, has voters, in deeply red states, deeply concerned.

This is where Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez come in. The Progressive pair are urging voters to "fight oligarchy," and as Sanders has said, "In an interview before taking the stage on Tuesday, Mr. Sanders expressed confidence that the wave of anti-establishment anger could turn into something substantive for the left. His short-term goal is to highlight vulnerable Republican House members and hammer them on issues like potential cuts to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid," reported The New York Times.

A total of 468 seats in the US Congress, thirty-three Senate seats, 22 Republican and 11 Democrats, and all 435 House seats, are up for election on November 3, 2026.

World News: Israel Pummels Gaza, Death Toll Rises

Trump WH Balks at AP, Refuses Media Access

The Trump White House has been operating on an agenda that refuses to compromise or comply with any demands, and that has become apparent in the recent decision by Judge Treavor McFadden, who ruled the White House had violated the First Amendment by excluding the Associated Press.

Unfortunately, this White House has held themselves to one law, the Trump law, and with that any disagreements or miscommunication, or failures to recognize his changes in there exactness, have resulted in barring the Associated Press from the press pool.

He warned the government of "consequences" if evidence emerged that the White House was not complying with his order. "That would be a way more serious problem," he said. "There could be consequences" who said, "I don't have many experiences with parties violating my injunctions," reported The New York Times.

Christians, Catholics, Celebrate Easter Sunday

For many, Easter Sunday is a spring ritual, the first holiday that ushers in warmer weather, and is filled with palettes of blues, pinks, and yellow dyed Easter eggs, traditional spring colors, and baskets of treats. For Christians, Easter Sunday, which commemorates the resurrection of Christ, is usually met with reverence, recognizing the sacrifice of Christ which atoned for the sins of the world, and the power of the resurrection, which gave dominion over the grave.

For the nearly 1.3 billion Catholics, Pope Francis is expected to deliver the traditional Easter message, although he did not attend the East vigil Mass at St. Peter's Basilica, and "Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, dean of the College of Cardinals, presided over the Easter vigil Mass in St. Peter's Basilica April 19 in place of Pope Francis, who is recovering from pneumonia," reported the National Catholic Reporter.

Pope Francis, 88, has recently been released from the hospital, and although he is expected to deliver the Easter Sunday message, as he was unable to meet with Vice President Vance, who is visiting the Vatican before he leaves for India, the aging pontiff who briefly met with Vance also sent a deputy in help Vance, who has explained he is a young catholic, on the need for compassion in the issue of immigration.

For more information on President Donald Trump: Whitehouse.gov.

Sources: Various © Articles covered by Copyright protection.

Janet Walker is the publisher, founder, and sole owner of Haute-Lifestyle.com. A graduate of New York University, she has been covering international news through the Beltway Insider, a weekly review of the nation's top stories, for more than a decade.  A general beat writer/reporter and entertainment/film critic, she is also an accomplished news/investigative news/crime reporter and submitted for Pulitzer Prize consideration "Cops Conspire to Deep Six Sex Assaults" in the Breaking News Category and was persuaded to withdraw the submission. Ms. Walker has completed five screenplays, "The Six Sides of Truth," "The Assassins of Fifth Avenue," "The Wednesday Killer," "The Manhattan Project," and the sci-fi thriller "Project 13: The Last Day." She is completing the non-fiction narrative, "Unholy Alliances: A True Crime Story," which is expected to be released in early 2025. She is a member of the Los Angeles Press Club, the National Writers Union, and a former member of the International Federation of Journalists.