“I was looking to become a better legislator, and to become more adept at making public policy,” he said in 2012. Langevin’s time at the Kennedy School helped prepare him to serve as a federal legislator representing Rhode Island’s second district, he said.

Dershowitz argued that even Cruz has profited from his time at the Law School—where the senator edited the Harvard Law Review, and graduated magna cum laude.

“I was very tough on him because he was very smart,” said Dershowitz, adding that some of Cruz’s litigation skills bear the hallmarks of a Law School education. “If you’re a conservative at Harvard, I want you to leave a smarter conservative.”

Though he will likely never publicly associate with Dershowitz’s legal views, Cruz will forever remain a Harvard graduate.

“We don’t disclaim our students even if we disagree with them,” Dershowitz said.

—Staff writer Matthew Q. Clarida can be reached at clarida@college.harvard.edu Follow him on Twitter @MattClarida.

—Staff writer Jared T. Lucky can be reached at lucky@college.harvard.edu. Follow him on Twtiter @jared_lucky.