Harvard President Claims 'unfounded Retaliation' Amid Trump Funding Feud

Harvard University President Alan Garber connected Monday sent a missive to Education Secretary Linda McMahon criticizing nan Trump administration's actions against nan schoolhouse while noting some groups stock "common ground" connected a number of issues. 

"We stock communal crushed connected a number of captious issues, including nan value of ending antisemitism and different bigotry connected campus," Garber said. "Like you, I judge that Harvard must foster an world situation that encourages state of thought and expression, and that we should clasp a multiplicity of viewpoints alternatively than focusing our attraction connected constrictive orthodoxies."

However, Harvard's goals are undermined and threatened "by nan national government’s overreach into nan law freedoms of backstage universities and its continuing disregard of Harvard’s compliance pinch nan law," Garber said. 

CALIFORNIA SHERIFF SLAMS ‘MERITLESS’ UCLA STUDENT LAWSUIT AGAINST POLICE WHO DISMANTLED ANTI-ISRAEL ENCAMPMENT

President of Harvard University Alan Garber addresses nan crowd during nan 373rd Commencement astatine Harvard University.  ((Photo by Craig F. Walker/The Boston Globe via Getty Images))

"Consistent pinch nan rule and pinch our ain values, we proceed to prosecute needed reforms, doing truthful successful consultation pinch our stakeholders and ever successful compliance pinch nan law," he wrote. "But Harvard will not surrender its core, legally-protected principles retired of fearfulness of unfounded retaliation by nan national government."

Garber's remarks are successful consequence to a scathing missive past week from McMahon telling nan assemblage that it will nary longer beryllium eligible for national grants complete its handling of antisemitism connected campus. 

"Receiving specified payer costs is simply a privilege, not a right," she wrote. "Yet alternatively of utilizing these costs to beforehand nan acquisition of its students, Harvard is engaging successful a systemic shape of violating national law. Where do galore of these ‘students’ travel from, who are they, really do they get into Harvard, aliases moreover into our state – and why is location truthful overmuch HATE?"

ISRAEL'S PRESIDENT RELEASES BLISTERING STATEMENT ON US UNIVERSITY ENCAMPMENTS: 'RESURGENCE OF ANTISEMITISM'

Department of Education Secretary Linda McMahon sent a scathing missive to Harvard University President Alan Garber, advising him to not use for national grants because they will not beryllium provided. (Getty Images)

"These are questions that must beryllium answered, among galore more, but nan biggest mobility of each is, why will Harvard not springiness straightforward answers to nan American public?" she added. 

The Trump management has stiff $2.2 cardinal successful backing to nan assemblage and threatened to revoke its tax-exempt status. 

TRUMP SAYS HE'LL REVOKE HARVARD'S TAX-EXEMPT STATUS

In his letter, Garber listed immoderate of nan actions Harvard has taken to reside issues connected campus, including installing caller deans and clarifying nan school's subject structures and procedures. He noted that Harvard, for illustration galore universities, has activity to do to foster intelligence diverseness connected campus. 

Garber besides pushed backmost connected McMahon's claims that Harvard is simply a "partisan" institution. 

The Trump management announced it was freezing complete $2 cardinal successful grants and contracts aft Harvard University said it would not comply pinch national demands regarding antisemitism. (Reuters/Nicholas Pfosi)

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

"I must refute your declare that Harvard is simply a partisan institution. It is neither Republican nor Democratic," he wrote. "It is not an limb of immoderate different governmental statement aliases movement. Nor will it ever be. Harvard is simply a spot to bring group of each backgrounds together to study successful an inclusive situation wherever ideas flourish sloppy of whether they are deemed 'conservative,' ‘liberal,’ aliases thing else, a spot wherever assumptions and claims are tested and challenged, respectfully and thoughtfully, successful pursuit of knowledge and truth."