The Trump administration will terminate federal contracts with Harvard University
Kyiv • UNN
The Trump administration terminates $100 million in federal contracts with Harvard University over allegations of racial discrimination and antisemitism. The White House is pressuring the university to change its policies.
The administration of US President Donald Trump intends to cancel all federal contracts with Harvard University totaling $100 million. This decision will be another escalation of the confrontation between the White House and the American Ivy League institution. This is reported by UNN with reference to Bloomberg.
Details
Josh Grunbaum, Commissioner of the Federal Acquisition Service, in a letter obtained by the publication, instructed federal agencies to review their contracts and terminate those they deem non-critical, and if necessary, to choose other contractors for government orders.
The US General Services Administration (GSA) assists all federal agencies in reviewing opportunities to terminate or transfer their federal government contracts with Harvard University and its affiliates. This review complies with an Administration directive that all federal agencies must steadfastly support and promote agency strategic priorities
The official, who is familiar with the situation and spoke about the actions of the White House administration on condition of anonymity, clarified the value of the contracts.
Grunbaum's letter claims that Harvard continues to "engage in racial discrimination, particularly in the admissions process and in other areas of student life." It also states that the government "is aware of recent events at Harvard University involving antisemitic acts, which indicate an alarming lack of concern by the institution for the safety and well-being of Jewish students."
The Trump administration has already taken steps to freeze funding and block Harvard's ability to enroll international students. Harvard is the oldest and wealthiest university in the US with an endowment of $53 billion.
White House officials are pressuring educational institutions to implement major changes in their policies, which, according to university representatives, violate freedom of speech and their academic missions. Harvard has been at the center of this Trump campaign. His administration has already suspended more than $2.6 billion in federal research funding to the university and stated that the institution will not be able to receive new funding.
The government demanded a number of policy changes from the educational institution as a condition for continued funding. It demanded that the university review its management system and transform its faculty recruitment and hiring system. Harvard was also demanded to stop admitting foreign students who, according to officials, are hostile to American values.
Recall
The US government prohibited Harvard University from accepting foreign students. This happened after disputes regarding the legality of the request for records by the Department of Homeland Security.