Judge overturns Trump funding cuts to Harvard

A federal judge in Boston has ordered the Trump administration to overturn its funding cuts to Harvard University, a decision that restores more than $2.6 billion in federal research grants that had been frozen and, in some cases, terminated.

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In a landmark ruling, US District Judge Allison Burroughs found the government’s actions amounted to "illegal retaliation" against the university for its refusal to comply with White House demands.

The judge's opinion was particularly critical of the administration’s stated rationale, writing that the administrative record made it "difficult to conclude anything other than that Defendants used antisemitism as a smokescreen for a targeted, ideologically-motivated assault on this country's premier universities".

The cuts had targeted a wide range of scientific projects, including research into cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, and opioid addiction, which the judge noted had "little connection between the research affected by the grant terminations and antisemitism".

The Trump administration had argued the cuts were tied to Harvard's alleged failure to adequately address antisemitism on campus.

However, the court sided with Harvard's argument that the government had violated its First Amendment rights by putting unconstitutional conditions on federal money. White House spokesperson Liz Huston immediately stated the administration would "immediately appeal this egregious decision," calling the judge an "activist Obama-appointed judge".

Harvard President Alan Garber stated that the decision "validates our arguments in defense of the University's academic freedom, critical scientific research, and the core principles of American higher education".

According to a legal filing from Harvard, the Trump administration's actions were part of a "pressure campaign" to force the university to "submit to the government's control over its academic programs" and its views on "anti-Israel speech on its campus".

The administration's actions were also connected to the pro-Palestinian protest movement that occurred on Harvard's campus and other universities following the October 7 events.