Does Harvard deserve war with Trump, or is government overstepping? Campus reacts to funding battle

"In my personal opinion, it's that Harvard kind of deserves everything that's happened, everything that is coming to it," said Carter Stewart, Emeritus Board Member of Harvard's Republican Club and a senior majoring in "Classics."

Stewart also shared that, from his viewpoint, the school was staking out a position as a "bastion of liberalism" and that it didn't feel right to do that with taxpayer money. 

"I think Harvard is faced with a choice, and it seems like they're making the wrong choice, which is to double down on these crazy ideas that most Americans don't agree with and to pay the price for that. So, I think it's a good thing that Harvard's being forced to put its money where its mouth is," Carter said.

The Harvard Republican also shared a response on social media regarding the university's decision.

Ryan Enos, a Harvard professor of government, said he was glad that his employer opposed the government's demands. 

"You shouldn't have the government coming in and telling a private institution what it can do in its internal affairs like that," he said.

Enos also commented on antisemitism on campus, stating that while he hasn't seen antisemitism directly, he believes there's a difference between anti-Jewish sentiment and protesting a war. 

Brendan, a Kennedy School graduate student, agreed with Enos about First Amendment rights. 

"I find that criticism of Israel is not antisemitic, and we should be protecting free speech, and I think that's important right now. I'm glad Harvard's standing up for free speech," Brendan said.

Aside from the $2.2 billion from the federal government, Harvard has the largest endowment among U.S. universities, sitting at $53.2 billion in 2024. The endowment funds come from philanthropic gifts, investments, trusts and other sources.

"I think if Harvard was doing the right kinds of things, if Harvard was actually supporting sort of a robust patriotic education that served Americans, then yes, I think federal funding would make sense," Carter said. 

Still, without government funding, Harvard is limited in its ability to use donor funds at its disposal, as most donations come with restrictions on how funds can be used. 

Carter also noted that he wasn't concerned if the school lost federal funding, citing events like "Sex Week" as a waste of the university's money. 

Enos, however, was concerned about the loss of federal funding, pointing to scientific research and the military. 

"I am worried about the funding disappearing," Enos said. "That funding goes towards things like research for deadly diseases. It goes towards scientific discoveries we're trying to make that make us competitive as a country, competitive on the world stage, things that fund our military, things that fund our hospitals, all those things."

In response to Harvard's non-compliance with the administration, Trump took to social media on Tuesday, threatening the university's tax-exempt status. He wrote it was contingent on "acting in the PUBLIC INTEREST!"