The Trump administration called on Harvard University to apologize Tuesday and questioned the purpose of federal funding after it froze $2.2 billion in multi-year grants to the school on Monday.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt framed the administration’s action as an effort to curb antisemitism on college campuses. But the administration is also demanding the university eliminate its diversity, equity and inclusion programs, ban masks at campus protests, and ensure merit-based hiring practices.
Pressed on President Donald Trump’s threat earlier Tuesday to tax Harvard as a political entity and remove its tax-exempt status, Leavitt deferred questions to the Internal Revenue Service. But she said broadly that the university needed to apologize.
Trump, Leavitt said, “wants to see Harvard apologize, and Harvard should apologize for the egregious antisemitism that took place on their college campus against Jewish American students.”
Leavitt pointed to remarks during a congressional hearing from the university’s former president, Claudine Gay, who said calling for the genocide of Jews “can” violate Harvard’s rules of bullying and harassment “depending on the context.” Gay has apologized for the remarks.
Leavitt also pointed to what she described as Harvard’s failure to discipline students involved in an encampment on campus and the disruption of classes. “The president believes Harvard should apologize to its Jewish American students for allowing such egregious behavior,” Leavitt said.
She also reiterated questions about the future of the university’s federal funding, a fight the Trump administration clearly believes is a winning political issue.
“I think the president is also begging a good question: more than $2 billion out the door to Harvard when they have a more than $50 billion endowment — why are the American taxpayers subsidizing a university that has billions of dollars in the bank already? And we certainly should not be funding a place where such grave antisemitism exists,” she said.
