Trump Administration Bars Harvard From New Federal Research Funding

The Trump administration announced Harvard University is ineligible to receive new research grants from the federal government, the latest escalation in the battle between the White House and the prestigious university.

Education Secretary Linda McMahon is expected to send a letter to Harvard President Alan Garber advising him that the university won’t be eligible for the funds “until they demonstrate responsible management of the university,” a senior department official said on a press call Monday.

The official said the administration is calling out Harvard’s failure to address antisemitism on campus; alleged racial discrimination by the student-led legal journal, the Harvard Law Review; “abandonment of rigor and academic excellence” because of changes in admissions requirements and accusations of plagiarism levied against top leaders; and purported lack of viewpoint diversity on campus.

The new restriction comes as the Trump administration has launched several probes from various agencies into Harvard after Garber refused to comply with a list of demands from the federal antisemitism task force. They included included changes to the university’s hiring, admissions, discipline and programming.

In order to reinstate its eligibility, the official said, the university "would have to enter into a negotiation with the government to satisfy the government that it's in compliance with all federal laws."

The Trump administration has already frozen more than $2.2 billion, the official said, and the university has roughly $8 billion in federal grants and contracts. But they also pointed to the institution's more than $53 billion endowment that was only possible for them to amass “thanks for the blessings of the country that they do business in.”

“The Trump administration won't stand by as taxpayer dollars are used to support colleges that tolerate antisemitism or that support racist policies,” the official said, adding that Harvard “can prioritize indoctrination, remedial classes for students, if they like,” with its endowment.