Trump Announces Deal with Harvard Amid Ongoing Tensions

US President Donald Trump revealed on Tuesday that his administration has reached an agreement with Harvard University after extensive negotiations. During a signing ceremony for unrelated executive orders in the Oval Office, Trump stated, "I guess we reached a deal with Harvard today, so we’ll see how that, all you have to do is paper it right, Linda," addressing Education Secretary Linda McMahon.

The deal reportedly involves Harvard paying approximately $500 million and establishing trade schools that will focus on teaching emerging skills, including artificial intelligence. Trump mentioned, "They’ll be paying about $500 million and they’ll be operating trade schools. They’re going to be teaching people how to do, AI, and lots of other things." However, the specific details of the agreement remain unclear, as neither the White House nor Harvard has provided further information about the trade school programs.

This announcement comes on the heels of a significant legal victory for Harvard earlier this month, when a federal judge ruled in its favour, restoring over $2 billion in federal research funding that had been previously frozen by the Trump administration. Harvard was the first university to challenge the administration in court, leading to escalating tensions since May when the Health and Human Services (HHS) department cut off substantial research funding.

In late August, a federal judge ordered the reinstatement of $2.7 billion in grants, stating that the government had overstepped its authority. The administration's move to refer Harvard to the debarment process could potentially block the university from accessing new federal funds, which would disrupt ongoing research in various fields, including science and medicine.

HHS had forwarded its investigation to the Department of Justice in July, indicating the possibility of legal action. Harvard officials have denied the allegations against them, asserting that the government is using claims of antisemitism as a means to exert control over the university's internal matters.