Reaction & Commentary
The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform is investigating how Harvard University uses taxpayer money as the school faces scrutiny on civil rights issues like antisemitism.
Committee Chairman James Comer and House Republican Leadership Chairwoman Elise Stefanik sent a letter to the university president, Dr. Alan M. Garber, Thursday afternoon, after the Trump administration halted $2.2 billion in funding to the school. The Department of Homeland Security is also scrapping $2.7 million in grants, and the IRS is weighing an end to the university’s tax-exempt status.
The goal is to ultimately decide “whether legislation is necessary to ensure that institutions of higher education receiving federal financial assistance are no longer able to violate the law while lucratively benefiting from the generosity of the American people.”
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A drone view shows anti-Israel protesters voluntarily packing up their encampment on the Yard at Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass., May 14, 2024. (Reuters/Brian Snyder/TPX Images of the Day)
The committee is asking for “documents and communications” to investigate the issue.
“On April 11, 2025, officials from the General Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the U.S. Department of Education wrote to you with a proposed settlement agreement seeking to return Harvard into compliance with civil rights laws,” the letter states.
“Instead of working with the government, you wrote to the Harvard community claiming that efforts to comply with basic civil rights law obligations would ‘surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights,” it continues.
“Even as Harvard is apparently preparing to reject all federal financial assistance so it can avoid complying with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Harvard has received enormous sums from foreign sources, including from authoritarian governments,” the letter added.
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Rep. James Comer, R-Ken., chairman of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, during a hearing in Washington, D.C., July 22, 2024. (Tierney L. Cross/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
On the possibility of the federal government ending the university’s tax-exempt status, the university told Fox News Thursday it has “no legal basis” to do so.
“The government has long exempted universities from taxes in order to support their educational mission. The tax exemption means that more of every dollar can go toward scholarships for students, lifesaving and life-enhancing medical research and technological advancements that drive economic growth,” a spokesperson said.
President Donald Trump has been a vocal critic of Harvard, saying its hires have been “almost all woke.”
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The Trump administration announced it was freezing over $2 billion in grants and contracts after Harvard University said it would not comply with federal demands regarding antisemitism. (Reuters/Nicholas Pfosi)
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“Harvard is a JOKE, teaches Hate and Stupidity, and should no longer receive Federal Funds,” Trump posted recently.
Antisemitism on American college campuses has become a major focus after anti-Israel protests hit a breaking point in the aftermath of the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks.
Harvard University said it’s reviewing the letter about the oversight investigation.
“Harvard is reviewing the committee’s inquiry, which — like the sdministration’s announcement of the freeze of $2.2 billion in grants and $60 million in contracts, scrutiny of foreign student visas, and consideration of revoking Harvard’s 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status — appears to be a direct response to the university’s commitment to uphold its independence and constitutional rights,” a spokesperson told Fox News Digital in a statement.
“Harvard continues to comply with the law, and we have made significant strides in combating antisemitism on our campus, strengthening our policies, disciplining those who violate our policies, encouraging civil discourse and promoting open, respectful dialogue.
“However, complying with the federal government’s demands, which are largely unrelated to combating antisemitism, would undermine our rights under the First Amendment and due process under Title VI and erode academic freedom. Such demands include changing Harvard’s governance structure, ‘reducing the power held by students and untenured faculty’ and submitting to external audits for viewpoint diversity. These demands go well beyond the requirements of federal law.”
