US judge reverses Trump administration’s Harvard funding cuts, calls it ‘ideologically motivated assault’

She said that the administration’s decision to terminate more than $2 billion in grants violated Harvard’s First Amendment rights, and amounted to retaliation after the university resisted government demands on campus policies. The ruling halts both existing freezes and future cuts tied to the dispute.

White House responds

The White House quickly announced plans to appeal.

Spokeswoman Liz Huston dismissed Burroughs as an “activist Obama-appointed judge” and said Harvard “does not have a constitutional right to taxpayer dollars,” reported AP. She added that the administration was determined to hold the University accountable.

President Donald Trump has previously demanded that Harvard pay at least $500 million as part of any settlement with the government, referencing similar agreements struck with Columbia and Brown universities. No such deal has been reached.

Harvard, faculty react to ruling

Harvard President Alan Garber welcomed the decision as an affirmation of academic freedom but signalled that legal battles are far from over.

“Even as we acknowledge the important principles affirmed in today’s ruling, we will continue to assess the implications of the opinion, monitor further legal developments, and be mindful of the changing landscape in which we seek to fulfill our mission,” Garber said in a message to the campus community, according to AP.

Faculty leaders urged the university not to strike a compromise with Washington. “We hope this decision makes clear to Harvard’s administration that bargaining the Harvard community’s rights away in a compromise with the government is unacceptable,” said historian Kirsten Weld, president of Harvard’s chapter of the American Association of University Professors, as per AP.

The whole picture

The funding dispute is part of a wider standoff between Harvard and the Trump administration, which has accused the University of tolerating antisemitism and fostering “radical left” ideologies.

Officials tied the grant cancellations to Harvard’s response to antisemitic harassment on campus, particularly after pro-Palestinian protests intensified following the war in Gaza.

Harvard has acknowledged shortcomings in addressing incidents targeting Jewish and Israeli students, calling such behavior “vicious and reprehensible,” as per Reuters.

But the university argued that federal officials were leveraging antisemitism concerns to force changes in governance, hiring, and admissions: areas the school insists should remain outside government control.

Now, the court’s order restores all federal research funding cut since April and blocks future terminations that violate Harvard’s constitutional rights or federal law. Still, Harvard researchers remain cautious about how soon, or whether, the money will return.

“Many of us are worried that the federal government is going to appeal this decision or find other ways to obstruct the delivery of research dollars, despite the judge’s clear statement that the funding terminations were illegal,” said Rita Hamad, a Harvard researcher quoted by AP.

(With inputs from AP, Reuters)

From the homepage

‘Pakistan will have to consider if it wants to remain part of globe’: Army Chief warns against testing India’s resolve

‘Leader vanished, no remorse, it shows his and party’s mental state’: Madras High Court tears into Vijay’s TVK, faults govt leniency

Several dead in PoK unrest: The protesters’ demands, how Pakistan govt responded