The Trump administration has put Cornell in its crosshairs, ordering the university to audit its international research ties by August 31 or risk losing vital federal funding. The Pentagon’s sudden mandate singles out partnerships linked to China, Russia, and Iran, ramping up the administration’s political pressure on American higher education. Higher education advocates have slammed the aggressive crackdown, pointing out that the White House is casting broad suspicion over standard global academic research without offering a single piece of evidence of wrongdoing.