Harvard Battles Trump Administration in Court Over $2.5 Billion in Lost Federal Grants

 

Harvard University is heading to federal court to challenge the Trump administration's decision to cancel roughly $2.5 billion in research grants. The university argues that the move is illegal and retaliatory, coming after it rejected a list of sweeping federal demands related to its campus governance, hiring, admissions, and academic direction. The federal hearing, taking place in Boston before Judge Allison Burroughs, is a major flashpoint in a growing standoff between the White House and U.S. universities. The canceled funding threatens hundreds of research projects at Harvard, including work on cancer treatments, infectious diseases, and Parkinson’s disease. President Trump’s administration claims Harvard has failed to sufficiently protect Jewish students on campus, especially in the wake of rising tensions tied to the Israel-Gaza conflict. It also accuses the university of promoting antisemitic and radical left ideologies. In response, the administration has taken multiple actions, including blocking international student access, threatening accreditation, and increasing taxes on Harvard’s $53 billion endowment. Harvard says the administration’s demands go far beyond addressing antisemitism. According to President Alan Garber, the federal actions could cost the university close to $1 billion per year, forcing layoffs and hiring freezes. He also claims the government is overstepping its authority by attempting to control what the school teaches and who it hires, infringing on its constitutional rights.

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The Trump administration’s April 11 letter to Harvard outlined several controversial demands. These included restructuring Harvard’s governance system, modifying its hiring and admissions practices to create more ideological balance, and ending certain academic programs. When Harvard rejected the letter, it says the federal government retaliated by cutting crucial research funding. White House spokesperson Harrison Fields defended the administration’s approach, saying its goals are to eliminate antisemitism, enforce the law, and ensure the protection of civil liberties for all students. Fields also suggested that a settlement is possible and that the administration is confident Harvard will eventually cooperate. In court filings, the administration contends that Judge Burroughs does not have the authority to hear the case, arguing that federal grant contracts can be canceled if they no longer serve government policy objectives. However, Judge Burroughs has previously ruled in Harvard’s favor in a related matter, stopping the administration from blocking international students from attending the university. Harvard says that the administration’s efforts go beyond lawful oversight and amount to unconstitutional interference. It claims that the government is using funding as a weapon to reshape the university’s ideology, violating its right to free speech and academic independence under the First Amendment. With billions of dollars and major research programs at stake, the outcome of this legal battle could have far-reaching implications for how U.S. universities operate under politically charged federal administrations.

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