As the Trump administration continues a full-scale crackdown on Harvard University, one viral theory making the rounds online has been firmly shut down by the First Lady herself.
Currently, President Donald Trump is embroiled in a heated back-and-forth with the Ivy League school. But rather than believe the POTUS’ actions are politically motivated, some critics question whether Trump’s vitriol is personal.
Online Conspiracy, Federal Cuts, and a Lawsuit
Speculation has swirled online that the administration’s aggressive stance against Harvard was personally motivated – with conspiracy theorists believing that Trump’s youngest son, Barron, may have been rejected from the university.
“It’s as simple as this. Barron was rejected by Harvard. Malia [Obama] got in! MAGA hates that,” one user wrote on X.
But according to official statements, there’s no truth to it. Barron Trump, 19, was accepted to multiple schools but ultimately chose New York University’s Stern School of Business, where tuition runs around $62,700 per year. He is currently finishing his freshman year and is expected to graduate in 2028.
The theory gained traction after President Trump ordered massive funding freezes and initiated efforts to cut ties with the university—moves that have since escalated into legal battles.
As of late May, the Trump administration has frozen approximately $3.2 billion in grants and contracts and announced plans to cut an additional $100 million in remaining federal funds.
The administration’s demands focused on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) policies, international student admissions, and campus environments described by officials as hostile toward Jewish students.
In a letter sent to Harvard, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote that the university had lost its “privilege” of enrolling international students due to its “refusal to comply with multiple requests to provide…pertinent information,” as well as promoting “pro-Hamas sympathies” and employing “racist ‘diversity, equity and inclusion’ policies.”
