Living in flyover country, I’ve never heard of Gay before her testimony to Congress. Maybe she ruffled some east coast feathers and if she did it wasn’t enough to make national news.
She sure did ruffle some feathers and not just on the East Coast. Harvard was successful attracting some sought after affirmative action hires and promotions. Gay was one that made some enemies along the way and attacked and blocked some other aspiring blacks. Others were already checking her work months before the questioning by Stefanik.
Harvard already knew they had a plagiarism problem months (and maybe longer) before Gay’s testimony in December. They also already knew they were losing millions of dollars by condoning antisemetic sentiment and behavior on campus.
And then there is another factor. Stefanik is an alumna of Harvard. She was on the advisory committee at the Kennedy School, a school that is well known as being very liberal. The dean of the Kennedy School very publicly booted Stefanik off the committee because she was a Republican and supported Trump. He should have known how important it is never to burn a bridge. They all should have known that.