In a dramatic escalation of his administration’s conflict with Harvard University, President Donald Trump signed a proclamation on Wednesday that suspends the enrollment of foreign students at the institution for at least six months.
This action reflects ongoing tensions between the Trump administration and the Ivy League school, which Trump has previously criticized for its handling of international students and campus issues.
The proclamation asserts that it is necessary to restrict the entry of foreign nationals seeking to study at Harvard, citing the university’s failure to provide adequate data on incidents of misconduct among its international students.
Trump described this lack of transparency as “an unacceptable risk,” stating that Harvard’s limited reporting—only three cases of misconduct—was insufficient for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to make informed decisions about student admissions.
“Harvard’s actions show that it either is not fully reporting its disciplinary records for foreign students or is not seriously policing its foreign students,” the proclamation reads.
Trump contends that such failures undermine the federal government’s ability to ensure that foreign nationals comply with U.S. laws.
This proclamation follows a series of actions taken by the Department of Homeland Security, which recently revoked Harvard’s participation in the Student and Exchange Visitor Program.
Additionally, Secretary of State Marco Rubio directed U.S. embassies to freeze visa appointments for exchange students.
Despite these developments, a federal district court ruled in favor of Harvard last week, temporarily blocking Trump’s attempts to halt foreign student enrollment.
Foreign students constitute approximately 25% of Harvard’s student body, making the implications of this proclamation particularly significant.
The president’s order invokes his authority to suspend the entry of any class of aliens deemed detrimental to U.S. interests and mandates a review of the visa status of current foreign students at Harvard.
Harvard officials have condemned the proclamation as an “illegal retaliatory step” that infringes on the university’s First Amendment rights.
A university spokesman emphasized that Harvard remains committed to protecting its international students despite the administration’s actions.
Trump’s proclamation also specifically targets China, alleging that the country seeks to exploit the U.S. student visa program for improper purposes, including espionage.
In recent years, Harvard has received substantial funding from foreign governments, including over $150 million from the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar. Trump has framed these financial ties as potential threats to national security.
This latest action intensifies a long-standing battle between Trump and Harvard, a university he has labeled as “anti-Semitic” and a “threat to democracy.”
The administration has already stripped more than $2 billion in federal funding from the institution, further complicating the relationship.
As the situation develops, the future of foreign student enrollment at Harvard hangs in the balance, highlighting the contentious intersection of higher education and national policy under the Trump administration.
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