(NewsNation) — The Trump administration is cracking down on elite universities by withholding federal funding that has long flowed to some of the wealthiest education institutions in the world.
Earlier this week, more than $1 billion in federal funding for Cornell University and around $790 million for Northwestern University were frozen while the government investigates alleged civil rights violations at both schools.
It was the Trump administration’s latest push to cut off money from elite colleges, a list that already included Columbia University and the University of Pennsylvania.
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“Can you imagine the money we pay Harvard? They have a $60 billion fund, and we’re giving them $8 billion,” Trump said Thursday.
Trump’s funding fight has largely centered around the universities’ use of DEI initiatives, as well as allegations of anti-semitism.
But it has also kick-started a broader conversation about why American taxpayers help fund universities with endowments worth billions of dollars to begin with.
“I’m not sure (Trump’s) totally right, but if you’re not paying that much attention to it, you’re like, ‘well that doesn’t make sense,” NewsNation contributor Chris Cillizza said regarding taxpayer funds going to elite institutions.
Cillizza pointed out that some of that money goes toward scientific and health research: “It’s not all bad, it’s just a lot of money.”
That said, Cillizza, a Georgetown University graduate, acknowledged that elite campuses do suffer from “unity of thought” and would benefit from more ideological diversity.
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“You should have your views challenged in an intellectual, thoughtful way,” Cillizza said.
He said he’s in favor of “expanding the clientele” of people who can go to high-end schools.
Watch the conversation with NewsNation’s Leland Vittert and Chris Cillizza in the player above.
