Judge rules Trump administration cannot withhold funding from Harvard
White House vows to appeal court ruling on Harvard funding freeze
- A US federal judge has ruled that the Trump administration's attempt to freeze $2.2 billion in research funding for Harvard University was unconstitutional.
- Boston U.S. District Judge Allison D Burroughs said that the move amounted to "retaliation, unconstitutional conditions, and unconstitutional coercion."
- The Trump administration had claimed the funding freeze was necessary to compel Harvard to address antisemitism and "radical left" ideologies on campus.
- Harvard sued, arguing its free speech rights were violated, with the judge agreeing and saying that antisemitism was used as a "smokescreen" for an ideological assault on universities.
- The ruling prevents the administration from terminating or freezing additional federal funding to Harvard, though the White House has vowed to appeal the decision.