Americas

Americas

Trump calls Harvard "joke", ordered freezing of $2.2 billion in federal funding

17 April 2025 15:37 (UTC +04:00)

US President Donald Trump has called Harvard a "joke" and said it should lose its government research contracts after the prestigious university refused demands that it accept outside political supervision, APA reports, citing AFP.

Trump's administration also threatened to ban the famed institution from admitting foreign students unless it bows to the requirements, as media reported that officials were considering revoking the university's tax-exempt status.

"Harvard can no longer be considered even a decent place of learning, and should not be considered on any list of the World's Great Universities or Colleges," Trump said on his Truth Social platform.

Trump is furious at the storied institution for rejecting government supervision of its admissions, hiring practices and political slant and ordered the freezing of $2.2 billion in federal funding this week.

Other institutions, including Columbia University, have bowed to less far-ranging demands from the Trump administration, which claims that the educational elite is too left-wing.