Harvard sues the Trump administration over funding cuts

Harvard University sued the Trump administration on Monday after the federal government canceled billions of dollars in funding for the Ivy League school.  

The lawsuit marks a significant — though expected — escalation in the battle between Harvard and President Trump after the nation's oldest university rejected administration demands to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and change its admission and hiring practices, among other things.  

In response, the Trump administration froze billions of dollars in funding, threatened the school’s tax-exemption status and said it could take away its ability to admit international students.  

“Moments ago, we filed a lawsuit to halt the funding freeze because it is unlawful and beyond the government’s authority,” Harvard President Alan Garber said Monday. 

The lawsuit accuses the administration of violating the First Amendment and asks a district judge in Massachusetts to stop any future harm from the federal government, declare the Trump’s administrations demands unconstitutional and reinstitute the university’s funding.  

"The Government wielded the threat of withholding federal funds in an attempt to coerce Harvard to conform with the Government’s preferred mix of viewpoints and ideologies," it says.

The lawsuit mentions Trump funding pauses at other colleges, saying in all such cases it has been unclear to schools why or when funding was taken away.  

“To date, the Government has — with little warning and even less explanation — slashed billions of dollars in federal funding to universities across America, including Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Princeton, the University of Pennsylvania, and Northwestern,” the lawsuit reads.  

While the Trump administration says the fight against Harvard is due to alleged inaction on antisemitism, the school argues that while it is working to combat the issue on campus, the demands of itself and other institutions have gone far past that.

“All told, the tradeoff put to Harvard and other universities is clear: Allow the Government to micromanage your academic institution or jeopardize the institution’s ability to pursue medical breakthroughs, scientific discoveries, and innovative solutions,” the lawsuit said.  

The Hill has reached out to the White House for a response.

—Updated at 5:35 p.m. EDT