President Donald Trump continued his war of words and funding on Harvard University on Monday, announcing that he is weighing taking $3 billion in grants frozen from the Ivy and giving it to trade schools instead.
In a Memorial Day post to Truth Social, Trump said he is “considering” taking the grant money “away from a very antisemitic Harvard, and giving it to TRADE SCHOOLS all across our land.”
He called such a transfer “a great investment” that is “badly needed.” Enrollment in trade schools and technical training programs are on the rise, according to data from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.
Trump’s post is the latest escalation in his fight with Harvard, which continues to rebuff administration directives on DEI and student activism.
The war began in earnest in late March, when the Trump administration accused the university of promoting “divisive ideologies over free inquiries” and of failing to protect Jewish students during Gaza war protests on campus. The administration announced it was conducting a review of $8.9 billion in federal grants and contracts.
Two weeks later, Harvard rejected Trump’s demands that the school comply with wide-ranging federal audits of academic programs and changes to its governance structure and hiring policies.
Within hours, Trump froze $2 billion in congressionally approved federal grants and $60 million in contracts.
Harvard sued to reverse the funds freeze on April 21 in federal court in Boston. The money for now remains inaccessible to the university; lawyers for the administration and the university are next due in court on July 21.
Last week, Harvard sued the administration again, this time after the administration said it would revoke the visas necessary to enroll and educate foreign students at the university.
On Friday, the university’s international students received a reprieve from US District Court Judge Allison Burroughs, the same judge presiding over the grant-termination case. The judge issued a temporary restraining order that will keep the case on hold as the sides prepare for their next court date, May 29.
Through a spokesperson, Harvard University declined to comment on the latest Truth Social post or on the ongoing litigation.
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