The president of Harvard on Wednesday defended the university’s decision to sue the Trump administration, adding that the institution “cannot compromise” on core principles like the First Amendment.
Harvard took legal action against the Trump administration on Monday over the government’s decision to freeze over $2 billion in federal funding meant for the university after it refused to make the reforms it ordered.
In an interview with NBC’s Lester Holt, university President Alan Garber said Harvard had “no choice” but to fight back.
“We are defending what I believe is one of the most important linchpins of the American economy and way of life: our universities,” Garber added.
The changes the administration ordered Harvard to make included ending all diversity, equity and inclusion programs, limiting foreign student admissions, requiring “viewpoint” diversity in all programs, and closing departments that cannot meet the administration’s demands.
Garber described the orders as impossible to accept, telling Holt he is not sure how much pain the university is able to take in the legal standoff with the White House.
“What we do know is that we cannot compromise on basic principles like defense of our First Amendment rights,” he said.
Since his inauguration, Trump has targeted elite universities across the country under the pretext of fighting antisemitism and DEI practices.
Garber, who is Jewish, said the university is already taking action to combat antisemitism, noting that the move to pull federal funds used to fund research is unrelated to the issue.
“We don’t really see the relationship to research funding at Harvard and other universities,” he said. “They are two different issues.”
Garber warned that attacks on universities will ultimately hurt Americans.
“What’s at risk is the excellence of higher education in the United States, and in particular, the research mission of many of our universities, which play such a vital role in the U.S. economy and in the health and well-being of the American people,” Garber said.
In response to Garber’s interview, White House spokesperson Harrison Fields claimed Trump “is standing up for every student denied an education or safe campus because left-wing universities fail to protect their civil rights.”
“Colleges are hooked on federal cash, and Mr. Garber’s public outburst only fuels the push to shut off the taxpayer money propping up their institution,” Fields told NBC News in a statement.
On Thursday, Trump once again lashed out at Harvard, calling the school a “threat to Democracy,” and accusing it of accepting students from around the world who want to “rip our Country apart.”