Wesleyan President Michael Roth Stands up to Trump Regime

Summary

The MeidasTouch Podcast: "Wesleyan President Michael Roth Stands up to Trump Regime"

Release Date: July 6, 2025

Introduction

In this compelling episode of The MeidasTouch Podcast, hosts Ben, Brett, and Jordy Meiselas delve into the escalating tensions between higher education institutions and the Trump administration. The focal point of the discussion centers on the University of Virginia (UVA) and its president, Jim Ryan, whose recent resignation has become a symbol of the broader conflict over diversity and academic freedom in American universities.

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1. The Trump Administration’s Assault on Academic Freedom

The episode opens with the hosts addressing the recent commencement address by Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin at the University of Virginia, highlighting the ensuing student walkouts. The conversation quickly shifts to the Trump regime's relentless pressure on UVA to dismantle its diversity programs and uphold a politically aligned curriculum.

Host/Narrator (02:40):
"The Trump regime has relentlessly attacked the University of Virginia for supporting diversity and academic freedom. Their target was the president of the university, Jim Ryan."

The administration's tactics include demands to audit the university's teachings, scrutinize the political viewpoints of faculty, and control the literature available to students. Failure to comply, the administration threatens, would result in the withdrawal of crucial funding.

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2. Jim Ryan’s Resignation Under Duress

The hosts recount the circumstances leading to Jim Ryan's resignation, portraying it as a capitulation under significant external pressure.

Host/Narrator (03:39):
"Jim Ryan... he just said he couldn't put himself above the university. He decided to step aside to protect others from losing their jobs under the Trump regime’s demands."

The discussion includes insights from Harmeet Dhillon and a Department of Justice official, highlighting the administration's lack of confidence in Ryan's commitment to diversity and the implications for federal funding tied to compliance with specific civil rights laws.

Harmeet Dhillon (04:35):
"President Ryan stepping down was part of what the Justice Department, what you were demanding to settle the suit is that. Do I have that right?"

Department of Justice Official (04:44):
"We significantly lacked confidence that Jim Ryan was going to be willing and able to preside over the dismantling..."

These exchanges underscore the administration's strategic use of regulatory pressure to influence university policies and leadership.

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3. Introducing Michael Roth: A Voice of Defiance

To provide a counter-narrative, the hosts invite Michael Roth, President of Wesleyan University, who has been a vocal critic of the Trump administration's policies affecting higher education. Roth's article in Slate is highlighted as a prescient analysis of the ongoing struggles.

Host/Narrator (05:39):
"President Michael Roth... one university president who's been on the front lines calling the Trump regime out, saying their tactics are authoritarian."

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4. Michael Roth’s Stand for Diversity and Academic Freedom

During the episode, Michael Roth articulates his unwavering commitment to upholding diversity and academic freedom despite the administration's pressures.

Michael Roth (06:43):
"The Trump administration has insisted on a version of non-discrimination... They do not want anything that looks like affirmative action."

Roth criticizes the administration's reinterpretation of civil rights laws and emphasizes the intrinsic value of a diverse academic community, referencing Thomas Jefferson's ideals.

Michael Roth (07:30):
"A diverse community is one in which you can learn more. Everybody has the same idea. If everybody has the same background, you're not going to learn very much."

He also reflects on Jim Ryan's leadership, commending Ryan's moderate stance and his approach to finding common ground despite differing viewpoints.

Michael Roth (08:15):
"Jim Ryan is a moderate guy... take a moment before you make a judgment and listen to what the other guy says so that you might find common ground."

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5. The Broader Implications for Civil Society

Roth expands the discussion to the wider implications of the administration's actions, framing them as part of an authoritarian playbook aimed at stifling dissent and enforcing loyalty across various sectors, including law firms, journalism, and technology companies.

Michael Roth (10:45):
"I see it as a war on civil society. The Trump administration wants to ensure that... all of these groups... will express loyalty to the president and his minions."

He warns of the dangers posed by such policies, not only to academic institutions but to the foundational freedoms of American society.

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6. Advice to University Leaders Facing Similar Pressures

When asked about his interactions with other university presidents, Roth shares his observations on the pervasive fear and the chilling effect it has on free speech and institutional integrity.

Michael Roth (09:57):
"I think that many people are just scared to death of being a target of an investigation... someone who works in the kitchen at Wesleyan, might find themselves a target of an ICE raid."

He urges leaders to resist authoritarian demands within the bounds of the law and to prioritize the preservation of academic values and freedoms.

Michael Roth (13:04):
"We have to call this out and hope that the administration will focus on things that it was elected to do... We have to exercise free speech."

Roth emphasizes that the fight is not against specific institutions like UVA or Harvard but against a broader assault on civil liberties.

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Conclusion

The episode culminates with a rallying cry for Americans to stand against the erosion of academic freedom and diversity initiatives. Michael Roth's steadfast stance serves as a beacon for other leaders grappling with similar pressures, highlighting the critical importance of upholding democratic values in the face of authoritarian challenges.

Michael Roth (14:00):
"It is so important to exercise free speech... We have to call this out and hope that the administration will focus on things that it was elected to do."

The MeidasTouch Podcast effectively sheds light on the intricate dynamics between political power and educational institutions, advocating for resilience and principled leadership in preserving the integrity of academia and, by extension, democracy itself.

Transcript

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[Michael Roth]

Grand Nation Graduates what a distinct privilege it is to join you this morning.

[Harmeet Dhillon]

To honor and congratulate the class of 2024.

[Host or Narrator]

Now that was the MAGA Republican governor of Virginia, Glenn Youngkin, giving a commencement address at the Virginia. You saw students there walking out. And now things at the University of Virginia have got a whole lot worse as the Trump regime has relentlessly attacked the university for supporting diversity and academic freedom. And their target was the president of the university, a guy by the name of Jim Ryan and the Trump regime. And actually a lot of alum of University of Virginia who worked at the Trump regime were kind of pushing this, too. They were like, if you don't get rid of your diversity programs and all of the same types of threats that the Trump regime is doing to Harvard. We want to take a look at. We want to audit what you're teaching, and we want to look at the political viewpoints of the teachers, and we want to decide what books kids get, students get to read. If you don't do all of that, we're going to stop the funding. And you got to fire.

[Michael Roth]

You got.

[Host or Narrator]

You got to get rid of Jim Ryan. We think that Jim Ryan's too supportive of diversity and academic freedom. And so we've told this story before on the Midas Touch Network, and you may have heard it. Now, Jim Ryan, the very popular president of the university, he resigned and he just said, look, I don't want to resign. I guess he said he was planning on, no matter what, moving on in a year or so anyway. He just said he couldn't put himself above the university. And if all these other people were going to lose these jobs if he didn't resign, he just said, you know, I'm gonna step aside. This is a very difficult decision for me, but it's under the duress and pressure was obvious of the Trump regime. You have Trump's Department of Justice person, Harmeet Dhillon. She explained the decision recently on cnn, and she says it. She says, look, you know, we thought that he was supportive of diversity, and we thought that was a problem here. Listen to what she says.

[Harmeet Dhillon]

So President Ryan stepping down was part of what the Justice Department, what you were demanding to settle the suit is that. Do I have that right?

[Department of Justice Official]

I wouldn't agree with that. I did express to leaders at UVA that we significantly lacked confidence at the Department of Justice that Jim Ryan, given his public statements and his ongoing public statements and his participation in groups talking about suing the Trump administration to avoid having to do exactly what they are requiring them to do. I don't have any confidence that he was going to be willing and able to preside over the dismantling of the.

[Harmeet Dhillon]

So they interpreted it as a demand that he stepped down. But that's. You didn't spell it out. That's not.

[Department of Justice Official]

As such. But I will tell you that there's a lot of money on the line here, and other schools have lost their federal funding for being. Being unwilling to comply with federal law. It isn't just Students for Fair Admissions. It's Title seven, it's Title nine, it's Title six. And so, you know, we can't be giving out billions of dollars to organizations and institutions that refuse to follow.

[Host or Narrator]

So the government is saying that it lost confidence in a university president because the university president supports academic freedom. I mean, you heard her say it there directly. I'll take US Back to February 8, 2025, where the President of Wesleyan University, President Michael S. Roth, wrote an article for Slate. Say something for heads of institutions. It's all too tempting to do what's easy. He wrote that February 8, 2025, saw what was coming. Couldn't have been more prescient. Let's bring in the president of Wesleyan University, Michael Roth. President Roth. You saw what I showed you right there. You've been very outspoken. If I would say there was one university president who's been on the front lines calling the Trump regime out, saying their tactics are authoritarian. It's been you. Are you not afraid that they're gonna come after Wesley? How are you doing it? And we don't see that necessarily the case with all other university presidents. How are you able to do it?

[Michael Roth]

Well, I think I'm just speaking the way I've always spoken in the United States, which, you know, supposed to be able to speak our minds and find out if we're wrong. By speaking out and getting pushback from people in the current atmosphere, though, of this regime, we have a government hell bent on insisting on loyalty. So that nonsense you heard from the official at the Department of Justice is that nonsense. In the mission statement of the University of Virginia, there is a call for diversity. This idea that somehow the University of Virginia's president and its bureaucracy was in violation of Title X, Y and Z is just totally false. What they have been doing is to work on their mission, which includes having a diverse community with people with respect and integrity and honesty. I think those are some of the words they use in their mission statement. And that was just too much for this administration. Diversity, respect, honor, integrity. Too much for this administration. I don't know Jim Ryan well, but Jim Ryan is a moderate guy. I mean, he wrote, he had this. He became famous because he had a commencement speech at Harvard several years ago, almost a decade ago. And one of the aspects of that speech was you should take a moment before you make a judgment and listen to what the other guy says so that you might find common ground with someone else. By taking a moment before you judge, and that we might together actually realize how we could work on something despite our differences. So I am clear that the Trump administration has insisted on a version of non discrimination, which is quite different from the last eight years, really, or more than that, last decades of civil rights interpretation. But I do think that the I'm not a lawyer, but I do think that the administration can define civil rights enforcement in different ways than their predecessors. And so I understand they do not want anything that looks like affirmative action. And I think reasonable people can work out what that means. In other words, the Trump administration is worried about discrimination against white people or what they might call reverse discrimination, and they were elected on that platform. So I do think there are things that schools have to do to comply with this administration, and I'm sure Jim Ryan was doing those things as well as working to ensure that there was a diverse community at the University of Virginia, because a diverse community, even Thomas Jefferson said so. A diverse community is one in which you can learn more. Everybody has the same idea. If everybody has the same background, you're not going to learn very much.

[Host or Narrator]

What are you hearing from university presidents as you speak to them across the country in this moment? How are they responding to this? And what's your overall sense of what's going on now as we're in July 2025, you wrote that article in February. Some of them did not say something. Some of them submitted pretty quickly. Others are standing up like Wesley. And so what do you say to them?

[Michael Roth]

Well, I think that many people are just scared to death of being a target of an investigation, which is costly, it's burdensome, and it can result in people losing their jobs. So I have a friend who's active in higher education and works on pluralism. And he said to me, I don't think everybody should speak up. All these presidents, you're not going to get arrested, Michael. But somebody who's cutting the grass at Wesleyan or someone who works in the kitchen at Wesleyan, might find themselves a target of an ICE raid. And so you're putting other people at risk. So I understand that that's a typical authoritarian playbook, is to make everybody afraid and so that people who can speak out, like me or other presidents, don't do so because they don't want to put other people at risk. Jim Ryan, he resigned because he didn't want to see all these other people lose their jobs. I respect him for doing that. I have no respect for the Board of visitors that accepted his resignation. They should have Said, hey, we have a mission. We're going to stick to our mission, and we will negotiate or litigate with the federal government. They didn't say that. You know, you described the governor of Virginia as a MAGA Republican. He's nearly not a MAGA Republican. He just goes with the wind, you know, I mean, the wind is right now. Maga, he'll flow with that. If it was Republicanism, like Nelson Rockefeller, he'd go that way. He has no standards, no principles. And so what's happened at the University of Virginia, which is so sad for that school, it's a great school, is that the efforts to figure out how to build a diverse community within this new civil rights framework, those efforts are going to be stymied. And I think that university will suffer. And I see this less about UVA or about Harvard or about Wesleyan. I see it as a war on civil society. The Trump administration wants to ensure that law firms, that journalists, the entertainment industry is coming soon, that all of these groups, technology companies, all of them will express loyalty to the president and his minions. And if they don't, they will be attacked. And attacks are very costly. And I think those of us who can speak up, we may be attacked. But those of us who can speak up about this have to, because it's our freedom that's at stake. It's not about Harvard or uva. It's the freedom of Americans that depends on groups in civil society not having to show their loyalty to any president, whether it's Trump or anyone else.

[Host or Narrator]

So before we go, we have about approaching 6 million subscribers here on the Midas Touch YouTube channel. Big platform. Your message to all the other university presidents out there or just leaders of organizations right now who are scared. I mean, obviously your university's under pressure, just like every university is under pressure. So if they're watching this and they're worried right now, what do you say to them?

[Michael Roth]

I think you should be worried. This is an authoritarian government with lots of power to impose its will on organizations around the country. But if we don't resist that effort within the law, non violently, but if we don't resist that effort, we will lose our freedoms. It is so important to exercise free speech. When people say to me, as you did, and all the last five months, people are saying to me, how do you find the courage or the chutzpah to speak up? I say, why would you need it? It's America. You shouldn't need courage to speak up. We have to call this out and hope that the administration will focus on things that it was elected to do. I mean, I have no doubt that they were elected with a different agenda than the previous administration, but that does not give them license to impose an authoritarian framework on civil society and on common American citizens.

[Host or Narrator]

President Michael Roth, president of the University of Wesleyan Wesleyan University, thanks so much. Thank you everybody. Hit subscribe. Let's get to 6 million subscribers. The truth is more important than ever. Check out our new Truth over lies [e-mail] touch.com all 100% USA union made.

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