Columbia University’s $200 million agreement with President Donald Trump’s administration marks the end of a months-long showdown, but academics warn it is just the first round of a government “assault” on higher education.Academics from Columbia and beyond have expressed concerns that the deal — which makes broad-ranging concessions and increases government oversight — will become the blueprint for how Trump brings other universities to heel.The New York institution was the first to be targeted in Trump’s war against elite universities, for what the US president claimed was its failure to tackle anti-Semitism on campus in the wake of pro-Palestinian protests.It was stripped of hundreds of millions of dollars of federal funding and lost its ability to apply for new research grants. Labs saw vital funding frozen, and dozens of researchers were laid off.But Columbia last week agreed to pay the government $200 million, and an additional $21 million to settle an investigation into anti-Semitism.According to Ted Mitchell, president of the American Council on Education, the lack of due process — with the government slashing funding before carrying out a formal investigation — left Columbia in an “untenable position.”Columbia law professor David Pozen agreed, saying the “manner in which the deal was constructed has been unlawful and coercive from the start” and slamming the agreement as giving “legal form to an extortion scheme.”- Federal oversight -The deal goes beyond addressing anti-Semitism and makes concessions on international student admissions, race and ethnicity considerations in admissions and single-sex spaces on campus, among other issues.Columbia also agreed to appoint an independent monitor to implement the deal, share ethnicity admissions data with the government and crack down on campus protests.Many of the provisions “represent significant incursions onto Columbia’s autonomy,” said Pozen.”What’s happened at Columbia is part of a broader authoritarian attack on civil society,” he said, pointing to similar pressures on law firms and media organizations to fall in line.According to the law professor, the deal “signals the emergence of a new regulatory regime in which the Trump administration will periodically and unpredictably shake down other schools and demand concessions from them.”In the coming weeks, Pozen said he expected the “administration will put a lot of pressure on Harvard and other schools to follow suit.”Harvard University has pushed back against the government, filing a lawsuit in a bid to reverse sweeping funding cuts.But Steven Levitsky, a professor of government at Harvard, said that “in terms of academic freedom and in terms of democracy, the (Columbia) precedent is devastating.”- ‘First round’ – Education Secretary Linda McMahon said she hoped the Columbia deal would be a “template for other universities around the country.”On Wednesday, McMahon announced a deal with Brown University to restore some federal funding and end ongoing investigations after the Ivy League school agreed to end race considerations in admissions and adopt a biological definition of gender.Brown President Christina Paxson admitted “there are other aspects of the agreement that were not part of previous federal reviews of Brown policies” but were “priorities of the federal administration.”Harvard is reportedly considering forking out $500 million to settle, according to the New York Times.Others have made smaller concessions to appease the government, with Trump’s alma mater the University of Pennsylvania banning transgender women from competing in women’s sports, and the University of Virginia’s head resigning after scrutiny over its diversity programs.Brendan Cantwell, a professor at Michigan State University who researches the history and governance of higher education, said government interference in universities “has not happened at scale like this, probably ever in American history.”While some university staff see striking an agreement as the quickest way to reopen the federal funding spigot, Cantwell warned that concessions such as sharing ethnicity data from admissions could be “weaponized” and provide fodder for future probes.Levitsky agreed, saying: “Extortionists don’t stop at the first concession. Extortionists come back for more.””There’s a very high likelihood that this is just the first round,” he said.Pozen noted that it will be harder for “major research universities to hold the line” compared to smaller colleges which are less reliant on federal funding.But Levitsky still urged Harvard to stand its ground and “fight back,” including in the courts. “Fighting an authoritarian regime is costly, but that’s what we have to do,” he said. “This is an unprecedented assault, and universities need to work together.”

An investigative hearing into a deadly mid-air collision of a US Army helicopter and a passenger plane that killed 67 people in Washington has revealed a discrepancy in the chopper’s altitude displays.The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the US agency tasked with examining major accidents, held hearings from Wednesday to Friday, with rigorous questioning of experts and various other parties including regulators and air traffic controllers.There were no survivors in the January 29 mid-air collision involving the Sikorsky Black Hawk military helicopter and a Bombardier CRJ700 operated by a subsidiary of American Airlines.The passenger plane from Wichita, Kansas was coming in to land at Reagan National Airport — just a few miles from the White House — when the Army helicopter on a training flight collided with it.After examining flight recorder data, the NTSB first reported a discrepancy in the helicopter’s altitude readings on February 14.As part of the investigation, tests were conducted with three of the same helicopter models — Sikorsky Black Hawk Lima — belonging to the same battalion. The findings revealed this week showed differences between the altitude indicated by the radar altimeter and the barometric altimeter on the aircraft.Investigator Marie Moler noted that the altimeters “showed an 80- to 130-foot (24- to 40-meter) difference in flight” although the differences were within 20 to 55 feet in a controlled test environment. “Once the helicopter rotors were turning and producing lift and thrust, the altimeter readings lowered significantly and stayed lower throughout the flights,” Moler said.NTSB chair Jennifer Homendy called the discrepancy significant, calling for more investigation. “I am concerned. There is a possibility that what the crew saw was very different than what the true altitude was,” Homendy said. “A 100-foot difference is significant” in this case, she added.In the Potomac River area where the collision occurred, helicopters are required to stay below 200 feet, officials said during the hearings.President Donald Trump was quick to blame diversity hiring policies for the accident although no evidence has emerged that they were responsible.Federal Aviation Agency air traffic control specialist Clark Allen told the hearing there was sufficient supervisory staff present in the control tower that night.The collision was the first major plane crash in the United States since 2009 when 49 people were killed near Buffalo, New York.

A combination of tact and tenacity is credited for Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum’s successful dealings with US counterpart Donald Trump, most recently convincing him to delay a sky-high import tariff meant to come into effect Friday.The pair are known to get along despite sitting on opposite sides of the political aisle, earning Mexico’s first woman president the epithet of “Trump whisperer.”At least three times now, the US president has granted Mexico tariff relief and Trump has described Sheinbaum as a “wonderful woman” to the envy of a host of other world leaders who have found exchanges with Trump can be tetchy.On Thursday, Trump agreed to delay by 90 days a 30 percent general tariff on imported Mexican goods, just hours before it was to take effect.It was the outcome of the ninth phone conversation between the two leaders since Trump returned to power in January with a strong rhetoric against undocumented migrants and fentanyl flowing from America’s southern neighbor.How did she do it? “With a cool head,” the president herself told reporters Friday.The 63-year-old physicist and dedicated leftist added that she avoids “confronting” the magnate, all the while insisting on Mexico’s sovereign rights in dealing with a man known to respect strong leaders.Sheinbaum has said that Mexicans should “never bow our heads” and Trump has acknowledged her mettle, remarking: “You’re tough” in one phone call, according to The New York Times. “Mexico represents a lot to the United States… they are aware of that,” Sheinbaum explained.- ‘Ability to convince’ -Thanks to the USMCA free trade agreement between Mexico, the United States and Canada, nearly 85 percent of Mexican exports have been tariff-free.And while a 30 percent general tariff has been delayed, for now, Mexico’s vital automotive sector is the target of a 25 percent levy, albeit with discounts for parts manufactured in the United States.Its steel and aluminum sectors, like those of other countries, are subject to a 50 percent tariff.Mexico’s government nevertheless claims the latest delay as a victory. “Without being sycophantic, I can tell you that the way our president handles her conversations, her approach, the firmness with which she defends Mexico’s interests, her ability to convince President Trump, is very significant,” Secretary of Economy Marcelo Ebrard, who leads trade negotiations, told reporters Thursday.- Give and take -Sheinbaum seems also to have adopted a give and take approach, deploying thousands of border troops to assuage Trump’s concerns about migration and drug flows.The president insists she has “not yielded anything” in negotiations with Trump, and talks are ongoing between the neighbors for a security agreement to tackle the problem of fentanyl and drug trafficking.Sheinbaum has also raised the possibility of importing more US products to reset the trade balance.Some fear the Mexican leader is merely buying time.The latest tariff delay “does not solve the issue of uncertainty; we return to the starting point,” Diego Marroquin, a trade expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, told AFP. 

Global markets reeled Friday after President Donald Trump’s tariffs barrage against nearly all US trading partners as governments looked down the barrel of a seven-day deadline before higher duties take effect.Trump announced late Thursday that dozens of economies, including the European Union, will face new tariff rates of between 10 and 41 percent.However, implementation will be on August 7 rather than Friday as previously announced, the White House said. This gives governments a window to rush to strike deals with Washington setting more favorable conditions.Neighboring Canada, one of the biggest US trade partners, was hit with 35 percent levies, up from 25 percent, effective Friday — but with wide-ranging, current exemptions remaining in place.The tariffs are a demonstration of raw economic power that Trump sees putting US exporters in a stronger position, while encouraging domestic manufacturing by keeping out foreign imports.But the muscular approach has raised fears of inflation and other economic fallout in the world’s biggest economy.Stock markets in Hong Kong, London and New York slumped as they digested the turmoil, while weak US employment data added to worries.Trump’s actions come as debate rages over how best to steer the US economy, with the Federal Reserve this week deciding to keep interest rates unchanged, despite massive political pressure from the White House to cut.Data Friday showed US job growth missing expectations for July, while unemployment ticked up to 4.2 percent from 4.1 percent.On Wall Street, the S&P 500 dropped 1.6 percent, while the Nasdaq tumbled 2.2 percent.- Political goals -Trump raised duties on around 70 economies, from a current 10 percent level imposed in April when he unleashed “reciprocal” tariffs citing unfair trade practices.The new, steeper levels listed in an executive order vary by trading partner. Any goods “transshipped” through other jurisdictions to avoid US duties would be hit with an additional 40 percent tariff, the order said.But Trump’s duties also have a distinctly political flavor, with the president using separate tariffs to pressure Brazil to drop the trial of his far-right ally, former president Jair Bolsonaro.He also warned of trade consequences for Canada, which faces a different set of duties, after Prime Minister Mark Carney announced plans to recognize a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly in September.In targeting Canada, the White House cited its failure to “cooperate in curbing the ongoing flood of fentanyl and other illicit drugs” — although Canada is not a major source of illegal narcotics.By contrast, Trump gave more time to Mexico, delaying for 90 days a threat to increase its tariffs from 25 percent to 30 percent.But exemptions remain for a wide range of Canadian and Mexican goods entering the United States under an existing North American trade pact.Carney said his government was “disappointed” with the latest rates hike but noted that with exclusions the US average tariff on Canadian goods remains one of the lowest among US trading partners.- ‘Tears up’ rule book -With questions hanging over the effectiveness of bilateral trade deals struck — including with the EU and Japan — the outcome of Trump’s overall plan remains uncertain.”No doubt about it — the executive order and related agreements concluded over the past few months tears up the trade rule book that has governed international trade since World War II,” said Wendy Cutler, senior vice president of the Asia Society Policy Institute.On Friday, Trump said he would consider distributing a tariff “dividend” to Americans.Notably excluded from Friday’s drama was China, which is in the midst of negotiations with the United States.Washington and Beijing at one point brought tit-for-tat tariffs to triple-digit levels, but have agreed to temporarily lower these duties and are working to extend their truce.Those who managed to strike deals with Washington to avert steeper threatened levies included Vietnam, Japan, Indonesia, the Philippines, South Korea and the European Union.Among other tariff levels adjusted in Trump’s latest order, Switzerland now faces a higher 39 percent duty.

Faced with closed restrooms, vandalized facilities and lavatory deserts, New Yorkers and visitors to the city alike confront a host of hurdles to relieve themselves when out and about.In its latest efforts to combat this problem, the Big Apple has turned to a Portland-based company that designs modular public conveniences it claims are city-proof.The products, dubbed “Portland Loos,” are the brainchild of Madden Fabrication and have garnered something of a cult following around the versatile, kiosk-like facilities which the company says are far cheaper than traditional toilet buildings.Such public toilet pods have already been installed in 250 locations throughout the United States.New York has pledged to build 49 new public bathrooms by 2029 to combat the lack of toilets across the five boroughs.Currently, there are approximately 1,100 public conveniences for the megacity’s 8.4 million people, according to official estimates.   – ‘Simple but durable’ -The city will spend $150 million on building new restrooms and renovating 36 existing sites. At the $200,000 unit installed in the Bronx’s Joyce Kilmer park, two blocks from Yankee Stadium baseball park, bystanders eyed the new fixture with interest.One man accidentally activated the hand dryer, part of a sink fitting located on the outside of the booth.A spokesman for the company described the design as “simple but durable,” with the basin placed outside in order to keep people moving and avoid a “hotel effect.””Hell yeah, we haven’t had a bathroom in this area in forever,” said lifelong Bronx resident Carlos Lopez, describing discrepancies in public restroom access between lower-income and wealthier neighborhoods.For the five trial units ordered, New York insisted on a higher grade of stainless steel and other modifications to meet strict planning rules.Street photographer Elijah Dominique, who lives near the park, said public bathrooms were especially important for unhoused people.”We’ve got a lot of homeless people in this area,” Dominique said. “Those are the people who really need these bathrooms. It’s good for them — and for us too so that we’re not stepping in (waste) on the sidewalks. Nobody wants that.”