US President Donald Trump said his administration is seeking $1 billion in damages from Harvard University, sharply criticizing the Ivy League institution over what he described as serious misconduct and antisemitism.
In a post published Monday on Truth Social, Trump wrote that "Strongly Antisemitic Harvard University has been feeding a lot of ‘nonsense’ to The Failing New York Times," adding that Harvard has "for a long time, behaving very badly." He accused the university of committing "serious and heinous illegalities."
Trump said Harvard had proposed what he called a "convoluted job training concept," which was rejected because it was "wholly inadequate and would not have been, in our opinion, successful." He said the proposal was "merely a way of Harvard getting out of a large cash settlement of more than 500 Million Dollars," a figure he said "should be much higher."
"This should be a Criminal, not Civil, event," Trump wrote. "Harvard will have to live with the consequences of their wrongdoings." He added, "In any event, this case will continue until justice is served."
Trump announced, "We are now seeking One Billion Dollars in damages, and want nothing further to do, into the future, with Harvard University."
He also sharply criticized Harvard President Dr. Alan Garber, writing that Garber "has done a terrible job of rectifying a very bad situation for his institution and, more importantly, America itself." Trump noted that Garber "was hired AFTER the antisemitism charges were brought," adding, "I wonder why???"
Trump cited reporting by The New York Times, quoting the newspaper as stating: "Some connected to the University, however, think Harvard has no option but to eventually cut a deal. The Administration has repeatedly attempted to cut off research grants, which would be an untenable crisis. Like many major research universities, Harvard relies on federal funding for its financial model."
In December, Trump’s administration appealed a judge’s ruling thatit had unlawfully terminated more than $2 billion in grants awarded to Harvard and barred further efforts to cut off research funding. Trump said last year his administration had been close to reaching a deal with Harvard that would have included a $500 million payment following months of negotiations over university policies.