President Trump is right: “There's no mask!”
It was his final jab this month in a true social post that threatened to end federal funds at universities and universities allowing “illegal protests.”
Last week, Columbia University graduates pressed schools to enact an official mask ban after the latest, chaotic Pro Hama protest.
But Trump himself has the power to end masked riots on campus via executive orders, just as many states have cracked down on Ku Klux Klan's masked march in the past.
The president's ability to force change is clear. Existing federal authorities and grant programs will give his administration broad discretion to require universities and universities to take action in the interests of students, particularly when physical safety and civil rights are involved.
The lawsuit against masks is also clear and constitutional.
The First Amendment protects freedom of speech, but does not give anyone the right to participate in violence, intimidating mobs or create public disability.
That's exactly what protesters did on university campuses around the country, driven by hatred towards Israel and the Jews. They wear masks because they don't want to be identified by police and campus administrators.
Consider just a few of the injustice that protesters have committed on campus since October 7, 2023.
The Bernard College building was demolished in February, causing $3 million in damage at City College last May.
They occupied university staff at Columbia University last year and detained university staff.
They blocked Jewish students from reaching UCLA classes and attacked Jewish students completely at DePaul University and elsewhere.
Nationally, the increase in masking has been linked to an almost four-fold increase in US anti-Semitism in the last year alone.
These are criminal acts, but they are not unprecedented. That's where the solution will be revealed.
Like today's anti-Semitic protesters, the KKK hooded members in the late 19th and early 20th centuries to thwart violence against blacks, Catholics and other minorities, whilst avoiding accountability.
They also wanted to be terrified of their immunity.
The state responded wisely by banning masks, so the KKK could not operate anonymously, and its members could be charged and sued.
By the mid-1950s, the clans were barely gone and were unable to hide behind the hood.
So it's no surprise that culturally and politically diverse states, such as Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Louisiana, North Carolina and Virginia, have had anti-masking laws about their books for decades.
In 1845, New York first passed such a law, but Congress repealed it during the community pandemic. A bill to revive it is pending.
Over the past year I have worked with many states to establish or strengthen such prohibitions and propose model laws in line with those policies to restore public safety and protect students.
Now it's time to make this a federal issue. The president must issue an executive order instructing the administration to do three things.
First, Education Secretary Linda McMahon should instruct all federal education fund recipients to implement a counter-masking policy in order to protect all students from harassment and intimidation.
This guidance is likely to cite existing state laws, so it can outline what serious policies entail and the university that woke up will not be built into a loophole.
Faculty can also require universities to implement policies to resolve civil rights complaints about hostile environments created by masked protests that disrupt educational programs.
Second, McMahon must issue anti-masking regulations under the Clery Act, which apply to institutions participating in the federal student loan program. Such schools must publish information about crime on or near campus.
Now, universities must submit a copy of their “Encourage accurate and prompt reporting of all crimes” policy each year. It is impossible to ensure accurate crime reports while Masked Mobs destroy property and destroy intimidating students. Therefore, you can use the Clery Act to disable masks.
Finally, Attorney General PAM Bondi must condition all grants under the Suspension School Violence Act regarding the adoption of anti-masking measures by universities.
Why does the Department of Justice need to fund campus police when administrators don't have the courage to tell students they don't tolerate KLAN's tactics?
These common sense movements are within the scope of established statutory authorities.
They are also morally necessary given the continued presence of masked agitators exerting anti-Semitic violence on campuses across the country.
Earlier, President Trump will give teeth to his call for “no masks,” but better.
Ilya Shapiro is the director of constitutional studies at the Manhattan Institute. Author of Lawless: The Elite of America.
