HE Trump administration`s mission to `Make America Great Again` is well underway, and, in true Trumpian logic, it entails the immediate dismantling of everything that made America `great` in the world`s eyes. Be it insulting steadfast American allies and berating them at international forums; rolling back USAID and the `soft power` it helped project in developing countries; upending global markets with `America first` policies; cheerleading xenophobes, neo-Nazis and rabid Islamophobes; or gleefully dismantling various domestic initiatives aimed at fostering a more equitable and inclusive culture and society, America under Donald Trump seems intent on tearing up the image it had built for decades in the post-World War II world. Now, the administration has turned its attention to American universities, globally regarded as some of the best centres of learning. In an effort to punish these institutions, apparently for promoting progressive ideas which the MAGA movement considers antithetical to its mission, the State Department has started using AI to identify so-called `Hamas supporters` among the tens of thousands of their foreign students. It intends to either deport those already present in the universities or cancel their visas, preventing their return.

In American right-wing and ultra-Zionist rhetoric, a `Hamas supporter` is of ten used to deride anyone who voices sympathy for ordinary Palestinians. Unfortunately for those who came up with this policy, anti-Israel sentiment is quite strong even among the American Gen Z, ie, those of university-going age. A Harvard poll last year said only 29pc of American youth aged 18-29 years trusted Mr Trump on Israel-Palestine, while a poll conducted by The Economist said 49pc of them believe there is a genocide ongoing in Palestine. It seems likely, therefore, that this policy will polarise the country further. Meanwhile, it will send a message to bright students from around the world that they and their ideas may no longer be welcome in America. This human capital may go elsewhere to pursue their education, creating lasting linkages with countries other than the US. The result is likely to be a proliferation of newer perspectives, which would gradually erode the US`s hegemony on global thought and innovation. With the rise of Mr Trump, it has often seemed as if the world may be witnessing the end of another empire. The most unexpected part? How self-inflicted this decline appears to be.