Former President Obama praised Harvard University on Monday for refusing to cave to the Trump administration’s demands in order to keep billions in federal funding.
The big picture: Obama had previously urged schools to stand up for their values and to resist intimidation amid pressure from the Trump administration, but Monday’s comments went a step further when he called the administration’s efforts “unlawful and ham-handed.”
Driving the news: “Harvard has set an example for other higher-ed institutions,” Obama said late Monday on X.
- Obama did not name the Trump administration in his post, but said that the pressure on schools is an “attempt to stifle academic freedom, while taking concrete steps to make sure all students at Harvard can benefit from an environment of intellectual inquiry, rigorous debate and mutual respect.”
- “Let’s hope other institutions follow suit,” he wrote.
Earlier this month, Obama also expressed his concerns about efforts to stifle free speech on college campuses during a Q&A at Hamilton College in upstate New York.
- “The idea of canceling a speaker who comes to your campus, trying to shout them down and not letting them speak, even if I find their ideas obnoxious, well, not only is that not what universities should be about, that’s not what America should be about,” he said.
- “I’m more deeply concerned with a federal government that threatens universities if they don’t give up students who are exercising their right to free speech,” he said.
Context: Obama attended Harvard Law School and in 1990 became the first Black president of the Harvard Law Review.
Catch up quick: An education task force on Monday said it will freeze $2.2 billion in grants and $60 million in contracts for Harvard after the university’s officials said they wouldn’t comply with the Trump administration’s demands.
- The Trump administration had requested multiple audits over hiring, admissions and college practices.
Go deeper: Trump admin cuts $2.2B in Harvard funding after university defies demands
