President Donald Trump continued his attack on Harvard University, highlighting the federal funding given to the school.
"Billions of dollars has been paid to Harvard," Trump said in the Oval Office on Friday. "How ridiculous is that? Billions. They have $52 billion as an endowment. This country is paying billions and billions of dollars and then gives student loans. Harvard's gonna have to change its ways."
Trump's comments came after a judge on Friday blocked the Trump administration from revoking Harvard University's ability to enroll foreign students, a move that ratcheted up White House efforts to conform practices in academia in the president's policies.
Harvard called the revocation a "blatant violation" of the U.S. Constitution and other federal laws, and said it had an "immediate and devastating effect" on the university and more than 7,000 visa holders.
The university has pushed back against Trump, having previously sued to restore some $3 billion in federal grants that had been frozen or canceled.
White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson dismissed Harvard's complaints
"If only Harvard cared this much about ending the scourge of anti-American, anti-Semitic, pro-terrorist agitators on their campus they wouldn't be in this situation to begin with," Jackson said. "Harvard should spend their time and resources on creating a safe campus environment instead of filing frivolous lawsuits."
Sam Barron ✉
Sam Barron has almost two decades of experience covering a wide range of topics including politics, crime and business.