(RepublicanPress.org) – On December 5, then-University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) President Liz Magill, MIT President Sally Kornbluth, and Harvard President Claudine Gay testified in Congress about antisemitism on college campuses. After a tense exchange with Representative Elise Stefanik (R-NY), the New York lawmaker called Gay a “plagiarist” during a news conference — an accusation the Harvard president vehemently denied. Now, one of Stefanik’s fellow House members pointed the same accusation her way.
On December 11, Representative Kathy Manning (D-NC) accused the New York legislator of plagiarizing one of her letters. She posted both her and Stefanik’s letters side by side on social media, challenging anyone to “spot the difference” in the first three paragraphs. Manning said her colleague copied her original text to “get her 15 minutes of fame.”
Elise Stefanik Accused of Plagiarizing Letter by Democratic Colleague Mere Hours After She Denounced ‘Plagiarist’ Harvard President https://t.co/xwPKaZCJl8
— Mediaite (@Mediaite) December 13, 2023
The North Carolina lawmaker said she sent her letter to the UPenn, Harvard, and MIT boards after the committee hearing in the House. Manning asked the universities to look at their policies and codes of conduct to protect Jewish people who attend and work at the schools from hate. She claimed to have reached across the aisle to Stefanik in order to make the letter a bipartisan effort. Manning said Stefanik’s feedback made it clear she was looking for a “soundbite & media hits” rather than helping protect the Jewish communities on campuses.
Stefanik responded to the accusation, calling Democrats “desperate and deranged.” She said Manning gave her a “rough draft” of the letter, her office made “significant edits,” and sent it back to the NC rep, who never responded. The NY legislator then said her office decided to go in a different direction because Manning didn’t want to call for the university presidents’ resignations. She accused her colleague of posting the letters as a “hit piece” because she was panicked about her position. Stefanik, again, accused Gay of plagiarism. However, The Fellows of Harvard College recently said they found “no violation” in her writings.
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