A federal judge has handed Harvard University a major legal victory, ruling that the Trump administration unlawfully froze more than $2 billion in federal research funding.
The decision, issued Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs, struck down the administration’s claims that its actions were motivated by concerns over antisemitism on campus.
Burroughs, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, criticized the government’s rationale, calling it a “smokescreen” for an ideologically motivated campaign against elite academic institutions.
“A review of the administrative record makes it difficult to conclude anything other than that defendants used antisemitism as a smokescreen for a targeted, ideologically-motivated assault on this country’s premier universities,” Burroughs wrote. She added that the administration’s actions “jeopardized decades of research and the welfare of all those who could stand to benefit.”
Harvard Pushes Back
The case began after the White House issued a “Freeze Order” in April, halting multi-year grants worth more than $2 billion. The move threatened key projects, including a predictive model for veterans’ mental health care, research into Lou Gehrig’s Disease, development of a radiation-exposure chip for NASA astronauts, and government efforts against emerging biological threats.
Burroughs found no link between those programs and antisemitism, noting there was no investigation into whether any affected labs were discriminatory or engaged in antisemitic behavior. “The funding freezes could and likely will harm the very people Defendants professed to be protecting,” she wrote.
In a statement to the Harvard community, President Alan Garber praised the ruling as a defense of “academic freedom, critical scientific research, and the core principles of American higher education.” Still, he acknowledged uncertainty ahead, promising to monitor legal developments as the White House considers an appeal.
White House Response
The Trump administration swiftly criticized the decision. “This activist Obama-appointed judge was always going to rule in Harvard’s favor, regardless of the facts,” White House spokesperson Liz Huston said. She argued the university had long failed to protect students from harassment and discrimination.
Trump himself has weighed in repeatedly, escalating tensions with the Ivy League institution. Just last week, he demanded Harvard pay “nothing less than $500 million” to settle disputes, urging Education Secretary Linda McMahon not to negotiate.
Wider Crackdown on Universities
Harvard is not the only school in the administration’s crosshairs. Columbia University recently agreed to pay $200 million to the U.S. Treasury in exchange for restored federal funding and oversight from an independent monitor. Brown University followed with a $50 million settlement benefiting Rhode Island workforce groups.
The administration is also in talks with Cornell University, Northwestern University, and UCLA, where officials say the White House is seeking $1 billion, a sum UCLA’s leadership warned would devastate the institution.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick described the administration’s multi-agency campaign against Harvard in candid remarks, joking that officials were “having fun” brainstorming new ways to apply pressure, including targeting patents.
Academic Freedom and the First Amendment
Judge Burroughs was clear that combating antisemitism remains important, but stressed it cannot come at the expense of constitutional rights. “Harvard was wrong to tolerate hateful behavior for as long as it did,” she wrote. “The record here, however, does not reflect that fighting antisemitism was defendants’ true aim … and even if it were, combatting antisemitism cannot be accomplished on the back of the First Amendment.”
For Harvard, the ruling represents both a financial lifeline and a symbolic defense of its independence. But with the White House vowing to appeal, the legal and political battles are far from over. As Garber noted, the fight is as much about the future of academic freedom in the United States as it is about Harvard’s bottom line.
Leo Cruz brings sharp insights into the world of politics, offering balanced reporting and analysis on the latest policies, elections, and global political events. With years of experience covering campaigns and interviewing world leaders, Leo ensures readers are always informed and engaged.
