‘That Harvard education is paying off for you': Judge jabs at Trump lawyer in Harvard case

Yahoo

01-08-2025

Judge Allison D. Burroughs, who is overseeing Harvard University's lawsuit against the Trump administration over canceled government funding for the university, isn't being shy with her commentary on the suit.
During a court hearing Monday, Burroughs characterized a Trump administration argument as 'a little bit mind-boggling.'
President Donald Trump, for his part, took to Truth Social to take aim at Burroughs on Monday, calling her a 'TOTAL DISASTER' and an 'automatic 'loss' for the People of our Country.'
During the Monday court date, Burroughs questioned Michael Velchik, the lawyer representing the Trump administration, who is also a Harvard alum.
'Lonely over there?' Burroughs asked Velchik at the beginning of the hearing, who was met by eight lawyers from two cases on the Harvard side.
'The executive branch speaks with one voice,' Velchik said.
During the hearing, Burroughs pushed back on whether the federal government could cancel grants across the institution en masse without substantially proving that researchers or labs had engaged in antisemitism.
This is what she characterized as a 'little bit mind-boggling' and said that 'there's no documentation, no procedure.'
She added that the 'consequences of that in terms of the constitutional law are staggering to me.'
She said that taking away grants from labs and researchers could hurt 'Americans and Jews.'
Velchik argued that it is under the federal government's authority to terminate any funding that doesn't align with federal priorities.
Holding up a black binder with Harvard's report on antisemitism, he said it is clear there is an issue at the university.
'You're waving that around,' the judge shot back, noting that the report was made public after the White House began taking action against Harvard.
He said the institution hasn't been adequately addressing the issue.
'How do you know that Harvard is not complying?' Burroughs said.
While she seemed to mostly aim her questions at the Trump administration's lawyer, she gave Velchik a brief — albeit pointed — compliment.
'I hear what you are saying, and you're saying it very well. That Harvard education is paying off for you,' Burroughs said.
In his Truth Social post on Monday, Trump pointed to Harvard as an institution that is 'anti-Semitic, anti-Christian and anti-America' and implied that Burroughs will rule in the university's favor.
'When she rules against us, we will IMMEDIATELY appeal, and WIN. Also, the Government will stop the practice of giving many Billions of Dollars to Harvard, much of which had been given without explanation. It is a longtime commitment to Fairness in Funding Education, and the Trump Administration will not stop until there is VICTORY,' Trump said.
What has happened between the Trump admin and Harvard?
The Trump administration has gone after Harvard since April, cutting billions of dollars.
Demanding an overhaul of Harvard's leadership structure, admissions and hiring — the federal government warned the school could risk losing $9 billion in funding.
Harvard rejected those demands, stating they seek to 'invade university freedoms long recognized by the Supreme Court.'
Then the fight over funding occurred.
It began with a $2.2 billion funding freeze on April 14 after the school refused to comply with the federal administration's demands.
In response, Harvard filed a lawsuit on April 21, arguing that its constitutional rights had been violated by the government's threats to pull billions of dollars in funding.
Harvard President Alan Garber also signed onto a letter with hundreds of other university presidents pushing back against 'government overreach and political interference' by the Trump administration.
At the beginning of May, the Trump administration said it would bar Harvard University from acquiring new federal grants while the school continues to refuse to comply with the administration's demands for change on its campus.
A few days later, eight federal agencies cut $450 million in grants and then the United States Department of Health and Human Services cut $60 million in grants from the university.
Harvard went on to amend its lawsuit against the Trump administration.
On May 16, a wave of nearly one thousand federal research grant terminations began, amounting to more than $2.4 billion, according to an analysis by Nature.
In response, Harvard established a new Presidential Priorities Fund, asking for donations in the midst of federal cuts.
Some of Harvard's schools, including its School of Public Health, took to social media to ask for donations after nearly every single federal grant had been terminated.
Other investigations and threats have been made against the institution, some of which have also focused on threatening the university's ability to enroll international students.
That is the university's second lawsuit.
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Read the original article on MassLive.