Trump brands Harvard 'antisemitic' and a 'threat to democracy' amid funding battle

President Donald Trump slammed Harvard University as an "[antisemitic], far-left institution" and a "threat to democracy" amid growing tensions between his administration and the university.

"Harvard is an [antisemitic], far-left institution, as are numerous others, with students being accepted from all over the world that want to rip our country apart. The place is a liberal mess, allowing a certain group of crazed lunatics to enter and exit the classroom and spew fake ANGER AND HATE," Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. "Harvard is a threat to democracy…"

In the same post, Trump also expressed his frustration that William Burck, the attorney representing Harvard, was a legal advisor to the Trump Organization. According to The Hill, Burck was fired after Trump posted on Truth Social.

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Harvard has become a target of Trump’s broader crackdown on universities, much of which is in response to last year’s anti-Israel unrest that erupted on campuses across the country.

On April 11, the Trump administration sent a letter to Harvard University President Dr. Alan Garber and Harvard Corporation Lead Member Penny Pritzker outlining the institution’s failures and a list of demands from the White House. In the letter, the administration accused Harvard of failing to uphold civil rights laws and to foster an "environment that produces intellectual creativity."

The Trump administration threatened to pull federal funding if Harvard did not reform governance and leadership, as well as its hiring and admissions practices by August 2025. The letter emphasized the need for Harvard to change its international admissions process to avoid admitting students who are "hostile" to American values or support terrorism or antisemitism.

Harvard refused to comply with the demands, with Garber saying that "no government… should dictate what private universities can teach, whom they can admit and hire, and areas of study and inquiry they can pursue." The university later filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration over its "unlawful" freezing of funds.

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The Trump administration froze $2.2 billion in funding to Harvard, and is reportedly looking to slash another billion, according to The Wall Street Journal.

While Harvard appeared to be quick to reject the Trump administration’s proposal, the New York Times reported that the university’s leaders and major donors pushed for the school to make a deal.

"For weeks leading up to the April 11 letter, the corporation took a very different stance toward the Trump administration. At the urging of some of its biggest donors, the corporation frantically tried to cut a deal with Mr. Trump," the NYT reported.

In December 2023, Harvard was criticized over its handling of antisemitism and anti-Israel unrest on its campus following Hamas’ Oct. 7 massacre and the war that followed. Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y. — a Trump ally — grilled the university’s then-President Claudine Gay over whether "calling for the genocide of Jews" constituted bullying and harassment. Gay famously said that it depended on the "context," a sentiment echoed by the other Ivy League presidents who were questioned. Less than a month after the hearing, Gay resigned from her position. However, she remains employed by the university.