The Trump administration is planning to cancel all remaining federal contracts with Harvard University, a day after the president mused about taking roughly $3 billion in federal funding that had been given to the “very antisemitic” Ivy League university and giving it to trade schools.
The fresh cuts — believed to be worth roughly $100 million — were requested in a memo fired off to federal agencies early Tuesday, according to a copy obtained by The Post. The administration had already frozen an estimated $3.2 billion in contracts and grants with Harvard.
The Tuesday letter from the US General Services Administration orders agencies to provide a report by June 6 on contracts with Harvard that it has or will cut off.
It also instructs the agencies to “seek alternative vendors for future services where you had previously considered Harvard.”
The letter blames the move in part on Harvard’s inaction to crack down on antisemitism on campus, as well as alleged “race discrimination” in its admission process.
“In light of this deeply troubling pattern, each agency should consider its contracts with Harvard University and determine whether Harvard and its services efficiently promote the priorities of the agency,” the memo states.
“We recommend that your agency terminate for convenience each contract that it determines has failed to meet its standards, and transition to a new vendor those contracts that could be better serviced by an alternative counterparty.”
Earlier this month, the Trump administration warned that Harvard wouldn’t be eligible for additional federal funds and cited four main grievances: antisemitism, racial discrimination, abandonment of rigor and a lack of viewpoint diversity.
Last month, the Trump administration inked a detailed letter to university president Alan Garver outlining more specific demands, including merit-based hiring, merit-based admissions, international admissions reform, viewpoint diversity, a crackdown on antisemitism, stronger whistleblower protections, student discipline reform and an end to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
Officials have been pushing the Ivy League school to enter negotiations and prove its compliance.
If the agencies find Harvard is the only suitable option, the admin has ordered them to provide a reason why the Ivy League should be kept on the federal government’s books, according to the Tuesday letter, which was first reported on by the New York Times.
The move is slated to affect nine agencies, the outlet reported, though it wasn’t immediately clear which ones.
Among the contracts Harvard currently has with the government are a $49,858 deal with the National Institutes of Health to research the effects of drinking coffee and a Homeland Security Department contract worth $25,800 for senior executive training.
“As you know, being a counterparty with the federal government comes with the deep responsibility and commitment to abide by all federal laws and ensure the safeguarding of taxpayer money,” the letter states.
“As fiduciaries to the taxpayer, the government has a duty to ensure that procurement dollars are directed to vendors and contractors who promote and champion principles of nondiscrimination and the national interest.”
The letter is the latest escalation in a broader battle between Harvard and the White House as the commander-in-chief seeks to compel universities, which he has long accused of left-wing bias, to get in line with his agenda.
Garber has signaled plans to hold his ground despite the financial blow to the university.
“We need to be firm in our commitments to what we stand for,” he told NPR Tuesday. “In the end, we’re about producing and disseminating knowledge and serving our nation and our world. When we fail in that, then we can expect to be attacked.
“We all need to redouble our commitment to the good of the nation and the world. And I know my fellow leaders fully embrace that.”
The Post has reached out to Harvard for additional comment.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration is also fighting to kick out thousands of foreign students enrolled at the Ivy League and has called for the school to hand over a list of all its visa-backed students.
Harvard got a reprieve last week after a US judge temporarily blocked the White House from revoking Harvard’s ability to enroll foreign students.
Trump blasted the school on Monday, accusing it of stalling on his demand for a list of all its foreign students.
“We are still waiting for the Foreign Student Lists from Harvard so that we can determine, after a ridiculous expenditure of BILLIONS OF DOLLARS, how many radicalized lunatics, troublemakers all, should not be let back into our Country,” he said on Truth Social.
Harvard has nearly 6,800 international students enrolled in its current school year, representing 27% of total enrollment and a significant whack of its revenue from tuition fees.
The Ivy League school has an endowment worth an estimated $53.2 billion. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has recently suggested that the Trump administration may look into revoking Harvard’s tax-exempt status, enabling the feds to raise rates on the endowment.
House Republicans advanced Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” last week, which ramps up taxes on endowments from 1.4% to as high as 21%, which could mean an estimated $850 million in additional taxes a year for Harvard.
In March, Columbia University backed down to the Trump administration’s sweeping demands for campus reforms after the government threatened to cut off $400 million in funding.
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