The Trump administration is preparing to withdraw an additional $1 billion in federal research grants and contracts from Harvard University, deepening a growing confrontation between the White House and the university over institutional independence and policy compliance, according to The Wall Street Journal.
This move comes days after the administration froze $2.2 billion in multi-year grants and $60 million in federal contracts, following Harvard’s refusal to implement policy demands outlined in a letter from the Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism.
The letter called for federal oversight of admissions, hiring, and campus ideological content, among other conditions.
The situation intensified after Harvard publicly released the letter, surprising officials who, according to the Journal, had expected the contents to remain private.
Sources close to the matter said the administration initially planned to approach Harvard more leniently than Columbia University, which recently adopted new restrictions on demonstrations and curriculum reviews to restore access to federal funding.
Harvard rejected the administration’s demands in an April 11 response. University President Alan M. Garber stated that Harvard “will not surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights.”
He described the federal demands as regulatory overreach, arguing that they would impose direct governmental control over the university’s academic and ideological environment.
The letter reportedly included provisions requiring Harvard to ban masks at campus protests, revise its merit-based admissions and hiring processes, and reduce the influence of faculty and administrators deemed overly political.
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) also weighed in on the controversy.
In a column published Friday in The Times of Israel, ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt cautioned that while combating antisemitism is important, it should not be conflated with broader political disputes about higher education.
“Other debates on higher education may be important, but they can and should be resolved separate from fighting antisemitism on campus,” he wrote.
The New York Times reported Friday that the letter sent to Harvard on April 11 may have been sent in error and was unauthoriaed.
However, the White House confirmed to CNN over the weekend that the letter was official and “stands by the letter.”
Adding to the pressure, CNN reported last week that the Internal Revenue Service is preparing to revoke Harvard’s tax-exempt status.
On the same day, the administration threatened the university’s ability to enroll foreign students, further expanding the scope of punitive action.
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey, a Harvard alumna, called the administration’s actions “outrageous” in an interview with CBS News on Sunday.
“It’s part of this continued playbook that Donald Trump has been using, which is to silence critics,” she said. “Now he’s going after colleges and universities, using any and all tactics to try to shut them down.”
No final decision has been announced regarding the additional $1 billion cut, but the administration has signaled a broader willingness to pressure elite academic institutions perceived as resisting federal directives.
