USMAY 26, 2025
“We Want Those Names”: Trump’s Harvard Witch Hunt Targets International Students
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Donald Trump demanded to know the names of all international students attending Harvard University.
The U.S. President’s latest swipe at the Ivy League comes just days after a court blocked Homeland Security’s attempt to ban Harvard from enrolling foreign students.
“Why isn’t Harvard saying that almost 31% of their students are from FOREIGN LANDS, and yet those countries, some not at all friendly to the United States, pay NOTHING toward their student’s education, nor do they ever intend to,” Trump posted on Truth Social on Sunday.
Highlights
- Trump demanded the names of all international students at Harvard.
- Homeland Security banned Harvard from enrolling international students but a judge temporarily blocked the order.
- Harvard condemned the government’s actions as unlawful, threatening thousands of students and academic independence.
Trump demanded a list of all international students attending Harvard University
Image credits: The White House
“Nobody told us that! We want to know who those foreign students are a reasonable request since we give Harvard BILLIONS OF DOLLARS, but Harvard isn’t exactly forthcoming. We want those names and countries.”
Last week, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem sent a letter to the university, accusing it of fostering antisemitism and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party on campus.
Noem banned Harvard from enrolling international students, which in turn meant that current students on non-immigrant visas would need to transfer to another university.
The demands are all related to disciplinary records of international students, with a particular focus on protests.
Noem said that the program was being revoked because Harvard had refused to provide those details when previously asked.
However, Harvard said it did respond to the department’s request as required by law and filed for a temporary restraining order.
Image credits: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Judge Allison Burroughs temporarily blocked the government and set a hearing for Thursday, May 29, to assess whether to extend the temporary order.
In his most recent post on Monday, Trump said he was still waiting on the names from Harvard so he could determine “how many radicalized lunatics, troublemakers all, should not be let back into our country.”
“The best thing Harvard has going for it is that they have shopped around and found the absolute best Judge (for them!) – But have no fear, the Government will, in the end, WIN,” he added.
Nearly 6,800 international students are enrolled at Harvard, making up about 27% of the university's population.
Harvard President Alan Garber condemned Noem’s letter and described the action as unlawful.
Trump has already frozen almost $3 billion in research grants for Harvard
Image credits: Harvard University
“The revocation continues a series of government actions to retaliate against Harvard for our refusal to surrender our academic independence and to submit to the federal government’s illegal assertion of control over our curriculum, our faculty, and our student body,” he said.
“We condemn this unlawful and unwarranted action. It imperils the futures of thousands of students and scholars across Harvard and serves as a warning to countless others at colleges and universities throughout the country who have come to America to pursue their education and fulfill their dreams.”
In an update after the court granted a temporary restraining order, Garber said it was a “critical step to protect the rights and opportunities of our international students and scholars.”
Noem’s list of demands included all audio and video of protests involving non-immigrant students at Harvard over the past five years, records of illegal or violent activity, disciplinary actions, and any incidents involving threats, intimidation, or deprivation of rights targeting classmates or university personnel.
Image credits: Sec_Noem
In her letter, she accused Harvard of perpetuating “an unsafe campus environment that is hostile to Jewish students, promotes pro-Hamas sympathies, and employs racist ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ policies.”
“It is a privilege, not a right, for universities to enroll foreign students and benefit from their higher tuition payments to help pad their multibillion-dollar endowments,” Noem said.
“Let this serve as a warning to all universities and academic institutions across the country,” she added.
Tensions between Harvard and the Trump administration have significantly deteriorated in recent months.
The federal government has targeted the university’s funding and tax status, freezing or canceling almost $3 billion in research funding for Harvard.
“I am considering taking Three Billion Dollars of Grant Money away from a very antisemitic Harvard and giving it to TRADE SCHOOLS all across our land,” he posted on Truth Social.
“What a great investment that would be for the USA, and so badly needed!!!”
It is not clear if Trump was referring to the grants his administration has already frozen.
Trump has also threatened Harvard’s tax-exempt status, which, if lost, would cost the university millions of dollars annually.