From New York Times, I'm Michael Barbaro.

This is the Daily.

Over the past five years, the activist Christopher Rufo has spearheaded the conservative critique of

and direct assault on critical race theory and DEI.

Rufo is likely the reason your conservative uncle knows the phrase critical race theory to begin

with. He's the reason that Trump became obsessed with it as a buzz term for pretty much

anything to do with race. Organizing remarkably effective campaigns against government

offices, corporations, and especially American

universities.

After weeks of intense scrutiny, Harvard University President Claudeine Gay resigned today.

Critics allege she plagiarized some of her academic writings.

Chris Rufo led a coalition of mostly right-wing opponents in a plan to remove Gay as

Harvard's president.

Rufo wrote scalped after Gay was forced out.

In the process, Rufo has become an influential voice in the ear of the Trump administration

as it turns his strategy into a wide-ranging government crackdown on higher education.

The Trump administration canceling $400 million worth of grants and contracts for Columbia University.

$175 million at U. Penn. $9 billion at Harvard. $790 million for Northwestern.

And dozens of grants at Princeton University

reportedly totaling hundreds of millions of dollars.

On Wednesday, we spoke about that crackdown

with the president of Princeton University.

...