US court blocks Trump administration’s funding cuts to Harvard
A U.S. federal court has overturned a decision by President Donald Trump’s administration to revoke billions of dollars in federal research grants to Harvard University, reports a Kazinform News Agency correspondent.
Boston-based Judge Allison Burroughs ruled that the freeze on around $2 billion in funding violated the Ivy League institution’s free speech rights. “The Court vacates and sets aside the Freeze Orders and Termination Letters as violative of the First Amendment,” she wrote in her 84-page decision.
The ruling prevents the government from halting existing payments or blocking future grants. However, the White House vowed to appeal, calling the decision “egregious” and describing Judge Burroughs as an “activist.”
Assistant Press Secretary Liz Huston stated: “Harvard does not have a constitutional right to taxpayer dollars and remains ineligible for grants in the future.”
Harvard President Alan Garber welcomed the ruling, noting that it “affirms Harvard’s First Amendment and procedural rights.”
He added: “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.”
Judge Burroughs criticized the university for tolerating antisemitism but wrote that the administration’s actions were “a targeted, ideologically-motivated assault on this country’s premier universities.”
Three other Ivy League institutions – Columbia, Penn, and Brown – struck separate agreements with the Trump administration to maintain federal funding rather than challenge the freeze in court.
Earlier, it was reported that the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump had proposed limiting the length of stay for foreign students, exchange visitors, and journalists in the United States.
