Donald Trump wants money from Harvard – exactly why the US government should receive it remains unclear.Image: keystone
US President Donald Trump is stepping up in the dispute with the elite university Harvard University. He is suing the elite university for damages. His allegations remain rather vague.
02/03/2026, 07:5102/03/2026, 07:51
His government is demanding one billion US dollars (778 million Swiss francs) in damages from the university and no longer wants to have any relationships with it in the future, Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
Trump accused Harvard of serious misconduct and anti-Semitic behavior. In his view, the matter is a criminal and not a civil law issue. However, he did not provide any concrete evidence of criminal acts and why the consequences should include compensation remains unclear. At the same time, he personally attacked university president Alan Garber and held him responsible for his handling of the conflict.
Dispute over influence on universities
The conflict is part of a larger dispute between the Trump administration and several top universities. The White House accuses parts of the university landscape of having a left-liberal orientation and inadequate measures against anti-Semitism, while at the same time trying to exert political influence through funding.
Harvard came under particular pressure. The university had temporarily withdrawn state research funds, but a federal court declared this unlawful and ordered the funds to be released. Discussions between the government and the university are ongoing.
Trump announces legal action against New York Times
The reason for the new escalation is a report by the New York Times about the dispute between the government and the university, which Trump described as “completely wrong”. Accordingly, the government has dropped its original demand for a payment of 200 million US dollars (almost 156 million francs) in ongoing discussions. The aim of the negotiations continues to be to implement changes to university policy, it said, citing people familiar with the discussions.
Trump, on the other hand, explained that the original sums involved were significantly larger and spoke of more than $500 million. At the same time, he announced legal action against the New York Times. “We will soon see how I fare in my lawsuit against these fraudsters,” he wrote.
Harvard did not immediately comment on Trump’s latest allegations. In April 2025, the university rejected the allegations through lawyers. (sda/dpa/con)