State Attorneys General Back Trump’s Effort to Hold Harvard Accountable

Sixteen state attorneys general banded together to support President Donald Trump’s efforts to hold Harvard University accountable for alleged antisemitism and racial discrimination.

“We stand firmly with the Trump administration and against antisemitism,” said Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird, the leader of the coalition. “But Harvard does not. When President Trump acted to fix the rampant antisemitism on Harvard’s campus by restricting federal funding, Harvard sued.”

“Harvard itself admits that antisemitism both exists and is a problem on its campus but is unwilling to address the issue,” Bird added. “Jewish students deserve equal protection and access to education which is why I led a 16-state coalition to support President Trump’s actions.” 

The coalition filed an amicus brief highlighting that the Trump administration’s move is not the first time a university has claimed the First Amendment protects them from federal disciplinary action.

The government removed Bob Jones University’s tax-exempt status in the 1980s due to its practice of racial discrimination.

The Supreme Court held that the federal government was not mandated to fund universities that practice illegal discrimination.

The states in the coalition included Iowa, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, and Texas.  

The coalition wrote the brief because, “States play a vital role in our system of cooperative federalism to combat invidious discrimination.”

“Harvard’s frank acceptance of hate that it would never countenance were it aimed at another group risks influencing institutions in our States,” the brief reads. “And unlike Harvard, our States stand against antisemitism.”

Harvard refused to comply with executive orders banning diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in education.

As a result, the Trump administration asked Harvard to disclose information about foreign students seeking to enroll, after the administration alleged that the university was guilty of civil rights abuses and antisemitism from its failure to appropriately respond to violent campus demonstrations in the wake of the Oct. 7 attack on Israel.

The Trump administration also froze $2.2 billion of Harvard’s federal grants and contracts. A court hearing on the university’s funding freeze is set for July 21.

Harvard did not immediately respond to The Daily Signal’s request for comment.

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