Forcing university presidents to resign, moreover, has not been part of the playbook of the Trump administration; as far as I know, I am the only university president in the country who has been forced to resign as part of a supposed deal with the Trump administration.
Mr. Ryan reflects on his unique situation compared to other university presidents.
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They were basically willing to grant U.Va. blanket immunity — all of the inquiries and investigations would be suspended, no financial penalties would be imposed and agencies would be told not to cut off our research funding.
If I did not resign that day, I was told that the D.O.J. would extract/block hundreds of millions of dollars from U.Va. before they would even negotiate.
I am writing, with a very heavy heart, to let you know that I have submitted my resignation as President of the University of Virginia.
But I cannot make a unilateral decision to fight the federal government in order to save my own job.
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