(The Center Square) – While the White House did not directly comment Tuesday afternoon on what other universities can expect from the Trump administration in light of the $2 billion funding freeze with Harvard, it maintained that its actions against Harvard are “common sense.”
“The president’s position on this is grounded in common sense in the basic principle that Jewish American students – or students of any faith – should not be illegally harassed and targeted on our nation’s college campuses,” said White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt during an afternoon press conference. “We unfortunately saw that illegal discrimination take place on the campus of Harvard.”
Late Monday, the administration announced it was freezing $2 billion in federal funding to the Ivy League university after Harvard said it would not comply with mandates to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs and other programs the administration believes contribute to antisemitism on campus.
Harvard claims that the administration’s actions interfere with the school’s First Amendment rights and that they go beyond the powers granted to the federal government under Title VI, as The Center Square previously reported.
Fox News’ Peter Doocy asked Leavitt why Ivy League schools receive so much taxpayer funding.
“It’s a very good question, and it’s a question the president has obviously raised in his discussions and negotiations with not just Harvard but also Columbia and many other Ivy League institutions,” Leavitt responded.
“I think a lot of Americans are wondering why their tax dollars are going to these universities when they are not only indoctrinating our nation’s students but also allowing such egregious illegal behavior to occur,” Leavitt said.
The administration said in March that it would withhold $400 million in federal funding from Columbia University if it didn’t agree to its demands related to antisemitism and protests on campus. The university quickly complied with the administration’s directives.
