Trump administration escalates conflict with Harvard by threatening to withhold all new federal grants

President Donald Trump’s administration is ramping up its war against Harvard.

Monday evening, the Education Secretary Linda McMahon, via the White House, informed Harvard’s President Dr. Alan Garber that the university will no longer receive new grants from the federal government unless they can exhibit responsible management practices, as stated by a senior Education Department official.

The official spoke on-background with reporters to discuss the administration’s plans. The letter’s text was later released on social media.    

Specifically, the grants affected are research grants, not federal student aid, which is channeled through universities to support students financially.

To regain eligibility for these grants, Harvard must engage in negotiations with the government to demonstrate compliance with all federal regulations, as outlined by the official.

The official railed against Harvard’s ‘terrible behavior’ saying that the Ivy League institution had failed in four main areas – with anti-Semitism being at the top of the list.

Trump has been critical of universities that allowed pro-Palestinian demonstrations to run amok. 

Trump administration officials have also taken issue with what they consider to be lack of diversity – with too few conservatives on staff. 

People enter and exit the Harry Elkins Widener Memorial Library on the Harvard University campus in Cambridge, Massachussetts 

Education Secretary Linda McMahon has penned a letter to Harvard’s president threatening to withhold all new federal grants 

‘They have become monolithically leftist and that DEI ideology connects to the anti-Semitism problem because they’re teaching young people to make snap judgments about each other based on identity and skin color,’ the senior official said. 

The official said the two other areas where Harvard has failed include academic rigor and racial discrimination.  

‘The Trump administration won’t stand by as taxpayer dollars are used to support colleges that tolerate anti-Semitism or that support racist policies,’ the official continued. 

The latest move represents a major escalation in a months-long war against the prominent institution.

Trump previously froze $2.2 billion in federal grants to Harvard and said he’s looking into stripping the Ivy of its tax-exempt status. 

During Monday night’s call with reporters, the Department of Education official said that Harvard’s endowment is ‘virtually untaxed’ and ‘massive.’

‘It’s larger than the GDP of many countries and it was only possible for them to amass that thanks to the blessings of this country that they do business in,’ the official said. 

Garber has previously said he won’t bend to the government. 

 

Education Secretary Linda McMahon sent a letter to Harvard’s president, Dr. Alan Garber, skewering the university

The university sued last month to overturn the funding freeze, pushing back against the government’s ‘sweeping and intrusive demands.’ 

In the letter, released on White House officials’ social media accounts, McMahon said that receiving taxpayer funds was a ‘privilege, not a right’ and claimed that Harvard was breaking federal law. 

The letter started out by focusing on the immigration status of students – likely those involved in the pro-Palestinian demonstrations – with McMahon saying they were engaged in ‘violent behavior.’ 

‘Where do many of these “students” come from, who are they, how do they get into Harvard, or even into our country – and why is sthere so much HATE?’ McMahon mused. ‘There are questions that must be answered, among many more, but the biggest question of all is, why will Harvard not give straightforward answers to the American public?’ 

The letter goes on to mock Harvard’s educational standards – mocking the teaching of ‘remedial math’ and calling attention to plagiarism scandals. 

McMahon also goes after the university for hiring former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and former Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, both Democrats, to teach leadership courses. 

‘This is like hiring the captain of the Titanic to teach navigation to future captains of the sea,’ McMahon wrote.