Harvard University is facing a new financial challenge over its alleged failure to tackle antisemitism on campus.
Leading figures from inside the Republican Party have ramped up efforts to strip the elite American university of billions of dollars in federal payments and tax breaks.
Harvard benefits from hundreds of millions of dollars in direct federal payments.
A total of $676million of Harvard’s cash comes from Washington, with almost $2.5billion coming from tax-free investments.
Harvard President Claudine Gay (2nd L) attends a menorah lighting ceremony on the seventh night of Hanukkah with the University's Jewish community
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Harvard faces no levy on capital gains, bond interests, corporation tax and dividend income.
Tuition, including federal loans, brings in $1.3billion.
Tax breaks help make the Massachusetts-based campus the world’s richest academic institution.
Harvard’s President Claudine Gay is currently facing an investigation by the Department of Education over whether the university has breached the civil rights of Jewish students.
Such rights are protected under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act.
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A truck calling the president of Harvard a disgrace drives around Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts
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New York Republican Elise Stefanik, who questioned Gay at the House Education and Workforce Committee last week, said: “We must defund the rot in America’s higher education.”
She added: “It is unacceptable and un-American that any taxpayer dollars are going to universities propping up their promulgation of antisemitism by supporting professors, students and staff many who have openly called for the genocide of Jews.
“We will use every tool at our disposal to ensure that schools that protect and encourage antisemitism are cut off from any and all federal funds.”
Arizona Republican Eli Crane also claimed he is introducing legislation to make colleges face real financial consequences if they have been found to have fostered antisemitism on campus since Hamas' October 7 attack against Israel.
He told The New York Post: “The American higher ed system is a racket, forcing taxpayers to first subsidize schools before roping them into paying student loans they didn’t choose to take on.
Harvard University sits as leaders of various universities, including Harvard President Claudine Gay, have taken heat from both Jewish communities
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“The schools make out like bandits, indoctrinating our youth with hate and delusion, all while taxpayers fund the whole thing. My bill starts to combat this scheme.”
Gay will continue as Harvard’s President despite her car crash testimony in which she claimed calling for Jewish genocide did not automatically constitute a breach of campus rules.
The Harvard Corporation said: “In this tumultuous and difficult time, we unanimously stand in support of President Gay.”
However, Crane’s calls to heap pressure on Ivy League schools which fail to take care of Jewish students comes after Republican Tim Scott introduced similar legislation in the Senate.
The South Carolina Senator said: “Any university or college that peddles blatant antisemitism, especially after Hamas’ brutal attack on Israeli civilians, women and children, has no place moulding the minds of future generations, never mind receiving millions of taxpayer funds to do so.”
Scott, who dropped out of the 2024 Grand Old Party primary race last month, added: “No college or university should receive a single cent from the federal government to fund violent antisemitism.”
However, Republican candidate Ron DeSantis joined calls for more action.
The Florida Governor, who graduated from Harvard’s Law School, said: “These are universities that will justify saying that it’s okay to talk about the genocide of Jews because of quote, free speech, but they don’t allow free speech on their universities.
“We’ve got to get smart about how we deal with these universities. We can’t keep funding universities that are creating this type of toxic environment and toxic ideology.”
Tesla CEO Elon Musk added: “Defunding Harvard is the only thing that will work.”