Banners on the Harry Elkins Widener Memorial Library at the Harvard University campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on May 27, 2025. (Sophie Park/Bloomberg)
In court on Monday, Harvard lawyer Steven Lehotsky argued that the funding cuts are an illegal attempt by the Trump administration to coerce the university into complying with the administration's policies and violate the First Amendment and Title VI protections.
Lawyers for Harvard have argued that the Trump administration's actions amount to an unconstitutional "pressure campaign" to influence and exert control over its academic programs, which Lehotsky echoed on Monday.
He told Burroughs the funding freeze is an attempt by the Trump administration to control the "inner workings" of the university, and one he argued could cause lasting damage.
He pointed to earlier claims from Harvard that the administration "fails to explain how the termination of funding for research to treat cancer, support veterans, and improve national security addresses antisemitism."
"By accepting federal funds, Harvard agreed to abide by the provisions in Title VI and the relevant agencies’ corresponding regulations," lawyers for the university said in filing the lawsuit earlier this year.
But Harvard’s agreement, they said, does not constitute a "blank check for agencies to impose the government’s recent, unrelated demands as a condition of continued funding."
Meanwhile, Michael Velchik, a lawyer for the Justice Department, countered that the administration has "every right" to cancel the funding, which they sought to frame as a mere contract issue and one that should be heard in a different court.
HARVARD PRESIDENT SAYS HE HAS 'NO CHOICE' BUT TO FIGHT TRUMP ADMINISTRATION
Harvard President Alan Garber acknowledges an extended round of applause during Harvard University's commencement ceremonies, May 29, 2025 in Cambridge. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)
Still, the judge appeared skeptical during the hearing of some Trump administration claims, including how it could make such wanton cuts to university funding.
At one point, Burroughs noted to Velchik that she had doubts about the government's so-called "ad hoc" decisions to cut billions in grant money without providing further evidence, documentation or procedure to "suss out" whether the university or its administrators had taken sufficient steps to combat antisemItism or comply with the guidance handed down by the Trump administration.
"The consequences of that in terms of constitutional law are staggering," she told Velchik at one point during the hearing.
"I don’t think you can justify a contract action based on impermissible suppression of speech."
Since Trump took office in January, the administration has targeted the university with investigations from six separate federal agencies.
It has also sought to ban Harvard's ability to host international students by attempting to revoke its certification status under the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) – a program led by the Department of Homeland Security that allows universities to sponsor international students for U.S. visas.
Burroughs in June issued a temporary restraining order blocking the administration from immediately revoking its SEVP credentials, siding with Harvard in ruling that the university would likely suffer "immediate and irreparable harm" if the action was enforced.
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Harvard, meanwhile, has signaled no plans to stand down in its fight with the Trump administration.
"Ultimately, this is about Trump trying to impose his view of the world on everybody else," Harvard Law professor Noah Feldman said in a radio interview earlier this summer discussing the administration's actions.
Breanne Deppisch is a national politics reporter for Fox News Digital covering the Trump administration, with a focus on the Justice Department, FBI, and other national news.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-admin-tells-skeptical-judge-has-every-right-slash-harvards-grant-funding