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Donald Trump said late Monday that his administration is pursuing $1 billion in damages from Harvard University, escalating an ongoing legal and political clash with the Ivy League institution.
“Strongly Antisemitic Harvard University has been feeding a lot of ‘nonsense’ to The Failing New York Times. Harvard has been, for a long time, behaving very badly! They wanted to do a convoluted job training concept, but it was turned down in that it was wholly inadequate and would not have been, in our opinion, successful. It was merely a way of Harvard getting out of a large cash settlement of more than 500 Million Dollars, a number that should be much higher for the serious and heinous illegalities that they have committed,” the president wrote.
“This should be a Criminal, not Civil, event, and Harvard will have to live with the consequences of their wrongdoings. In any event, this case will continue until justice is served. Dr. Alan Garber, the President of Harvard, has done a terrible job of rectifying a very bad situation for his institution and, more importantly, America, itself. He was hired AFTER the antisemitism charges were brought – I wonder why??? We are now seeking One Billion Dollars in damages, and want nothing further to do, into the future, with Harvard University,” he added.
“As The Failing New York Times clearly stated, ‘Some connected to the University, however, think Harvard has no option but to eventually cut a deal. The Administration has repeatedly attempted to cut off research grants, which would be an untenable crises. Like many major research universities, Harvard relies on federal funding for its financial model,’” the president concluded.
The statement comes as Trump’s administration continues to challenge a December court ruling that found the government unlawfully terminated more than $2 billion in federal grants awarded to Harvard and barred officials from cutting off the school’s research funding. The administration has appealed that decision.
Harvard has become a key target in Trump’s broader effort to use federal funding as leverage to push changes at U.S. universities. Trump has repeatedly argued that higher education institutions are plagued by antisemitism and what he describes as “radical left” ideology.
Last year, Trump said his administration was nearing an agreement with Harvard that would have required the university to pay $500 million following months of negotiations over campus policies. It remains unclear whether those talks are ongoing or how the newly announced damages demand could affect any potential settlement.