Trump shuts down millions of dollars in federal research grants to Harvard

The Trump administration announced Monday that it would end all new federal research grants for Harvard University, as the feud between the president and the university continued.

Education Dept. Secretary Linda McMahon excoriated the university in a scathing letter sent to their president, according to the New York Times.

'Taxpayer funds are a privilege, and Harvard fails to meet the basic conditions required to access that privilege.'

The letter mocked the "embarrassing" remedial math program offered to students and the plagiarism scandals that have plagued some university officials.

"Harvard University has made a mockery of this country's higher education system," McMahon wrote. "It has invited foreign students, who engage in violent behavior and show contempt for the United States of America, to its campus. In every way, Harvard has failed to abide by its legal obligations, its ethical and fiduciary duties, its transparency responsibilities, and any semblance of academic rigor. It had scrapped standardized testing requirements and a normalized grading system."

Harvard has filed a lawsuit against the administration over federal funds that were cut to the university over accusations that they had not done enough to curtail intimidation and violence against Jewish students by pro-Palestinian protesters.

"The government has not — and cannot — identify any rational connection between anti-Semitism concerns and the medical, scientific, technological, and other research it has frozen that aims to save American lives, foster American success, preserve American security, and maintain America's position as a global leader in innovation," reads the lawsuit.

A previous statement from a Trump spokesperson said the university did not deserve to receive the funds.

"The gravy train of federal assistance to institutions like Harvard, which enrich their grossly overpaid bureaucrats with tax dollars from struggling American families is coming to an end," said spokesperson Harrison Fields. "Taxpayer funds are a privilege, and Harvard fails to meet the basic conditions required to access that privilege."

The Times reported that federal funding accounted for about 11% of the university's revenues in 2024, or about $687 million.

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