Reading this morning’s report on a meeting of the Northwestern faculty with its interim president Henry Bienen, I was struck by the language Bienen uses to set out his stance toward Trump: I want to do a deal with the federal government. I don’t want to get into suits with the federal government. Set aside the substance of what he’s saying. I’m more startled by the effluence of such Trumpian language—not just “deal” but “I want to do a deal”—from the mouth of a university president. Not, “I think we might come to a prudent arrangement with the federal government.” Not “I think a path of compromise is always more productive than one of confrontation.” Not “the law and the […]