The Steady Drip: Trump GSA: End $100M in Harvard Federal Contracts (Connecting the Dots: This is a Long One!)

Trump GSA: End $100M in Harvard Federal Contracts (Connecting the Dots: This is a Long One!)

Newsmax.com

By Eric Mack | Tuesday, 27 May 2025 09:16 AM EDT

https://www.newsmax.com/us/harvard-federal-funding-liberal/2025/05/27/id/1212466/

President Donald Trump's ongoing effort to cut the federal spigot to Harvard has taken another step: a letter from the General Services Administration (GSA) urging federal agencies to cancel all contracts with the institution that Trump alleges is violating the Constitution in the name of liberal politics.

Stop doing government business with Harvard, the administration is telling its agencies.

The May 27 memo from the federal procurement office to Trump administration agencies urges the canceling of an estimated $100 million in existing deals, The New York Times reported Tuesday, and calls for government leaders to seek "alternative vendors for future services."

"We recommend that your agency terminate for convenience each contract that it determines has failed to meet its standards, and transition to a new vend or those contracts that could be better serviced by an alternative counterparty.

"Going forward, we also encourage your agency to seek alternative vendors for future services where you had previously considered Harvard."

While the $100 million is a significant figure, it pales in comparison to the nearly $3.2 billion in federal taxpayer grants that Harvard benefits from that Trump has already frozen in the past month.

The Trump administration agencies have until June 6 to respond to the GSA with their lists of contract cancellations.

Among the contracts Harvard has been given that will face the ax:

NEW TASK FORCE AIMS TO PROTECT NATION WITH BETTER INFORMATION AND TECHNOLOGY

The Markle Foundation in alliance with CSIS and The Brookings Institution launches information and technology working group to improve national security

https://www.mafhoum.com/press3/88T43.htm

New York, NY and Washington, DC, March 6, 2002 - An independent, multi-sector task force to determine how information and technology can enhance national security was announced today by the Markle Foundation in alliance with the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and the Brookings Institution.

The Task Force on National Security in the Information Age is co-chaired by Markle Foundation president Zoë Baird and former Netscape Communications chairman James Barksdale. It will include leaders from industry, government and the civil liberties community. Participants include EdVenture Holdings chairman Esther Dyson; Sun Microsystems chief researcher John Gage Governor Mike Leavitt of Utah and former National Security Agency deputy director Bill Crowell among many others.

In the months since September 11, military, intelligence and law enforcement experts have increasingly recognized the critical role that information plays in national security. However, experts agree that efforts to enable better collection and sharing of information require clearer definition of the roles of government agencies, better assessment of new technologies for improved information handling and careful consideration of how to expand the use of information while safeguarding civil liberties. The group will allow thought leaders from a wide variety of relevant fields to address these matters together.

"Information is the key to a more secure society. As we expand the role of information collection and sharing, let's be sure we also protect the democratic freedoms that make our society worth securing," said Ms. Baird. "This task force is the kind of broad, multi-sectoral effort needed to address these imperatives and create a viable framework for moving forward."

The task force will make recommendations regarding:

· Technologies that enable the more effective collection and sharing of information in response to new security threats

· Aligning governmental structures and rules with the more information-intensive approach needed to counteract new security threats

· Balancing the expansion of information's role in national security with safeguards for civil liberties - particularly in the privacy realm

· Strategies for deploying information more effectively for law enforcement, intelligence and homeland defense.

· The role of the private sector in designing and implementing an information-based national security response, and the level of collaboration between private and public sectors.

"New technologies, applied appropriately, can effectively transform our ability to meet the security challenges of the twenty-first century," said John Hamre, president, CSIS. "This task force will develop the comprehensive conceptual framework that is needed to identify the information gaps and drive a strategy for remedying them."

Over the next year, the group will release policy and briefing papers, provide information on promising technologies and inform government officials. The ultimate goal is to produce a broad and coherent strategic vision that will enable the U.S. government, in collaboration with industry and civil society, to meet the challenge of the new security environment in an information age.

Current participants in the Task Force on National Security in the Information Age

Michael Armacost, President, the Brookings Institution
Robert Atkinson, Progressive Policy Institute
Stewart Baker, Lawyer, Steptoe & Johnson
Jerry Berman, Executive Director, Center For Democracy & Technology
Robert Bryant, President & CEO, The National Insurance Crime Bureau
William Crowell, President & CEO, CyLink Corporation
Esther Dyson, Chairman, EdVenture Holdings
David Farber, Professor of Telecommunication Systems, University of Pennsylvania School of Engineering
John Gage, Chief Researcher, Sun Microsystems
John Hamre, President, Center for Strategic and International Studies
Eric Holder, Partner, Covington & Burling
Arnold Kanter, Principal, The Scowcroft Group
Robert Kimmitt, Executive Vice President of Global and Strategic Policy, AOL Time Warner, Inc.
Michael Leavitt, Governor of Utah
Tara Lemmey, Founding Partner & CEO, Project LENS
Judy Miller, Lawyer, Williams & Connolly
Jim Morris, Dean, Carnegie Mellon School of Computer Science
Jeffrey Smith, Partner, Arnold & Porter
Abraham Sofaer, Senior Fellow, Hoover Institution, Stanford University
Paul Schott Stevens, Partner, Financial Services, Privacy Law, Dechert
Rick White, President & CEO, TechNet

About the Markle Foundation
The Markle Foundation works to realize the potential of emerging communications media and information technology to improve people's lives, through its own programs of grants, investments, research and public education. Markle recently committed $100 million to its efforts in public policy, healthcare and children's learning. For more information see http://www.markle.org/.

About the Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS)
For four decades, CSIS has been dedicated to providing world leaders with strategic insights on-solutions to-current and emerging global issues. CSIS maintains resident experts on all the world's major geographical regions and is committed to helping develop new methods of governance for the global age. Its audiences include public and private policymakers in the United States and around the world. For more information, see http://www.csis.org/about/index.htm.

About The Brookings Institution
The Brookings Institution is an independent, nonpartisan research organization, which seeks to improve the performance and quality of U.S. public policies. It addresses current and emerging policy challenges and offers practical recommendations for dealing with them, expressed in language that is accessible to policymakers and the general public alike. For more information, see http://www.brookings.edu/.

Connecting the Dots:

C. Douglas Dillon was an overseer at Harvard University and the chairman for the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Henry Louis Gates Jr. is a professor at Harvard University and an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Paul E. Peterson is a professor at Harvard University and was a director of governmental studies at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Lawrence H. Summers was a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank) and is a professor; former president of Harvard University.

Ann M. Fudge was an overseer at Harvard University and is a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

John C. Whitehead was the chairman for Harvard University and is an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Harold H. Koh was an overseer for Harvard University, the State Department legal adviser for the Barack Obama administration and a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Herbert M. Kaplan is a board of fellow’s member for Harvard Medical School and an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Cass R. Sunstein is a professor at Harvard Medical School and a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Lynn Bendheim Thoman is a board of fellow’s member for Harvard Medical School and a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Howard E. Cox Jr. is a board of fellow’s member for Harvard Medical School and a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Kenneth M. Duberstein is a senior advisory committee member for the Harvard University Institute of Politics and a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Harold H. Koh was an overseer at Harvard University, a developments editor for the Harvard Law Review, the State Department legal adviser for the Barack Obama administration and a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Brookings Institution (think tank).

George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.

Suzanne Nora Johnson is trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank) and a director at the Markle Foundation.

Markle Task Force on National Security in the Information Age is a national-security project for the Markle Foundation.

R. Rand Beers is a member of the Markle Task Force on National Security in the Information Age and the Homeland Security undersecretary for the Barack Obama administration.

Ashton B. Carter is the defense acquisitions czar for the Barack Obama administration and a member of the Markle Task Force on National Security in the Information Age.

Mary DeRosa was the deputy counsel to the president for national security affairs for the Barack Obama administration and is a member of the Markle Task Force on National Security in the Information Age.

Zoe Baird is the president of the Markle Foundation, a member of the Markle Task Force on National Security in the Information Age, and an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Brookings Institution (think tank).

George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.

David M. Rubenstein is a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank) and was a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Brookings Institution (think tank).

George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society and is the founder & chairman for the Open Society Foundations.

Open Society Foundations was a funder for the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank).

Richard L. Armitage is a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank) and a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

James L. Jones Jr. is a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank) and a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

David D. Aufhauser is a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank) and was a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Harold Brown is an honorary director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank) and a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

James E. Cartwright is a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank) and the Harold Brown Chair in Defense Policy Studies for the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Henry A. Kissinger was a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank) and a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

James R. Schlesinger is a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank) and a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Brent Scowcroft is the interim chairman; chair, international advisory board at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank) and a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Richard R. Burt is a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank) and was a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Frank C. Carlucci is an honorary director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank) and was a counselor at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Robert E. Hunter is a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank) and was a VP for the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Zalmay Khalilzad is a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank) and was a counselor at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Joseph E. Robert Jr. was a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank) and a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

John W. Warner is an honorary director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank) and was a counselor at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Dov S. Zakheim is a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank) and was a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).
Colin L. Powell was a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank) and a strategic limited partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.

James L. Barksdale is a strategic limited partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and a member of the Markle Task Force on National Security in the Information Age.

Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers was a donor for The Climate Project.

Albert A. Gore Jr. was a donor for The Climate Project, is a partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and the chairman for the Climate Reality Project.

Brent Scowcroft was a director at the Climate Reality Project and is a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Climate Reality Project.

George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society and is the founder & chairman for the Open Society Foundations.

Open Society Foundations was a funder for the American Constitution Society.

Eric H. Holder Jr. was a board member for the American Constitution Society, the attorney general for the Barack Obama administration and a member of the Markle Task Force on National Security in the Information Age.

John A. Gordon is a member of the Markle Task Force on National Security in the Information Age and a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank).

Arnold Kanter is a member of the Markle Task Force on National Security in the Information Age and was a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank).

Judith A. Miller is a member of the Markle Task Force on National Security in the Information Age and a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank).

Wesley K. Clark is a member of the Markle Task Force on National Security in the Information Age and a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank).

James B. Steinberg is a member of the Markle Task Force on National Security in the Information Age and a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank).

Open Society Foundations was a funder for the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank).

George Soros is the founder & chairman for the Open Society Foundations.

Morton H. Halperin is a senior adviser for the Open Society Foundations, Mark Halperin’s father, a member of the Markle Task Force on National Security in the Information Age and was a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress.

Mark Halperin is Morton H. Halperin’s son and currently a host and commentator for Newsmax TV.

Open Society Foundations was a funder for the Center for American Progress.

George Soros is the founder & chairman for the Open Society Foundations and was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Suzanne Nora Johnson is a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank) and a director at the Markle Foundation.

Harold H. Koh was a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), the State Department legal adviser for the Barack Obama administration and a director at Human Rights First.

Lewis B. Kaden is a director at Human Rights First and a director at the Markle Foundation.

William D. Zabel is the chair for the Human Rights First, was George Soros’s divorce lawyer and a trustee at the Foundation to Promote Open Society.

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Human Rights First.

George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society, William D. Zabel was his divorce lawyer and is the founder & chairman for the Open Society Foundations.

Open Society Foundations was a funder for the Human Rights First.

Mark A. Angelson was a director at the Human Rights First and a partner at Sidley Austin LLP.

James D. Zirin was a director at the Human Rights First and a partner at Sidley Austin LLP.

R. Eden Martin is counsel at Sidley Austin LLP and the president of the Commercial Club of Chicago.

Newton N. Minow is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago and a senior counsel at Sidley Austin LLP.

Michelle Obama was a lawyer at Sidley Austin LLP.

Barack Obama was an intern at Sidley Austin LLP and his signature policy initiative is Obamacare.

Obamacare is Barack Obama’s signature policy initiative.

CGI Group Inc. was the Obamacare contractor that developed Healthcare.gov web site.

Donna S. Morea was the EVP for the CGI Group Inc. and a trustee at the Committee for Economic Development.

Letitia James is the chair for the Committee on Economic Development and the Attorney General of New York.

William E. Brock III is a trustee at the Committee for Economic Development and a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Benjamin W. Heineman Jr. is a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank) and a trustee at the Committee for Economic Development.

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation was a funder for the Committee for Economic Development.

Open Society Foundations was a funder for the Committee for Economic Development.

George Soros is the founder & chairman for the Open Society Foundations and was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Committee for Economic Development and the International Rescue Committee.

International Rescue Committee is a partner with the ONE Campaign.

Michelle Obama was an advocate for the ONE Campaign and a lawyer at Sidley Austin LLP.

Maurice R. Greenberg is an overseer at the International Rescue Committee and a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Felix G. Rohatyn is a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank) and an overseer at the International Rescue Committee.

Henry A. Kissinger was a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank) and an overseer at the International Rescue Committee.

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the International Rescue Committee.

George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.

International Rescue Committee is a partner with the ONE Campaign.

Michelle Obama was an advocate for the ONE Campaign and a lawyer at Sidley Austin LLP.

Howard G. Buffett is a director at the ONE Campaign and Warren E. Buffett’s son.

Susan A. Buffett is a director at the ONE Campaign and Warren E. Buffett’s daughter.

Joe Cerrell is a director at the ONE Campaign and a managing director, global policy & advocacy for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation was a funder for the International Rescue Committee.

Warren E. Buffett is a trustee & major donor for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Howard G. Buffett & Susan A. Buffett’s father and an adviser for the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank).

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank) was a funder for the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank).

Margaret A. Hamburg is the VP for the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank),

the commissioner for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and a member of the Markle Task Force on National Security in the Information Age.

Jessica Tuchman Mathews is a director at the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank), the president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank) and was an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank) was a funder for the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank).

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank), the Brookings Institution (think tank) and the Urban Institute (think tank).

George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank) was a funder for the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank).

Sam Nunn is the co-chairman & CEO for the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank) and the chairman for the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Warren E. Buffett is an adviser at the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank), a life trustee at the Urban Institute (think tank) and a trustee & major donor for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation was a funder for the Urban Institute (think tank).

Carla A. Hills is a life trustee at the Urban Institute (think tank) and a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Urban Institute (think tank) and the New America Foundation.

George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.

and is Jonathan Soros’s father.

Jonathan Soros is George Soros’s son and a director at the New America Foundation.

Helene D. Gayle is a director at the New America Foundation and a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Kenneth G. Langone is a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank), a trustee at the Harlem Children's Zone and a director at the Robin Hood Foundation.

Maurice R. Greenberg was a benefactor for the Harlem Children's Zone and is a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Harlem Children's Zone, the Robin Hood Foundation and the International Rescue Committee.

George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society and a benefactor for the Harlem Children's Zone.

Michael R. Bloomberg was a benefactor for the Harlem Children's Zone, a donor for the Robin Hood Foundation, an advocate for the ONE Campaign, a friend of Henry A. Kissinger and is the founder of the Bloomberg Family Foundation.

International Rescue Committee is a partner with the ONE Campaign.

Felix G. Rohatyn is an overseer at the International Rescue Committee and a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Maurice R. Greenberg is an overseer at the International Rescue Committee and a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Henry A. Kissinger was an overseer at the International Rescue Committee, a friend of Michael R. Bloomberg, a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank) and a lifetime trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank).

Bloomberg Family Foundation was a funder for the Aspen Institute (think tank).

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Aspen Institute (think tank).

George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.

Henrietta Holsman Fore is a trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank) and a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Dolores D. Wharton was a lifetime trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank) and is a trustee emeritus at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

Frederick B. Whittemore was a lifetime trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank) and is a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank).

David M. Rubenstein was a benefactor for the Aspen Institute (think tank), a trustee at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (think tank), spent Thanksgiving with Joe Biden and is a co-chairman for the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Aspen Institute (think tank) and the Brookings Institution (think tank).

George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.

C. Douglas Dillon was the chairman for the Brookings Institution (think tank) and an overseer at Harvard University.