Schumer, Schiff accuse Trump of exploiting antisemitism to punish universities

Five Jewish Democratic senators demanded answers from President Donald Trump on the calculus behind penalizing Harvard University, its medical school and other collegiate institutions across the country under what they called the pretext of antisemitism on campus.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York and Sens. Adam Schiff of California, Jacky Rosen of Nevada, Brian Schatz of Hawaii and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut lambasted the president, while saying they agree on the scourge of antisemitism over time.

“Dear President Trump, we write regarding your administration’s assault on universities, including threats and actions to withhold funds or otherwise punish certain institutions of higher learning, in what you claim is an effort to eliminate the very real threat of anti-Semitism on college campuses,” the Thursday letter began.

“We also write as Jewish senators who have spoken out strongly against rising antisemitism here in the United States, including on college campuses, and who have called on university leaders to do more to tackle antisemitism with accountability and action in the wake of the horrific October 7 attack by Hamas on Israel.” 

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The quintet called Trump’s decisions to freeze funding for Harvard and focus on other schools where antisemitic behavior and protests abounded last year “broad and extra-legal attacks” — adding they were “troubled and disturbed” by his decisions.

The lawmakers said Trump’s actions “seem to go far beyond combating antisemitism” and into the range of “using what is a real crisis as a pretext to attack people and institutions who do not agree with you.”

Speaking of Harvard specifically, the senators said threatening to revoke the Ivy League college’s tax-exempt status and demeaning faculty as “woke, radical left idiots” goes far beyond constructive efforts to support Jewish students.

“They instead seem to be aimed broadly at changing the way the university functions, exacting huge penalties in ways wholly unrelated to combating anti-Semitism, and we fear are instead aimed at undermining or even destroying these vital institutions while hiding behind claims of tackling antisemitism as a guise,” the letter said.

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They offered an olive branch in seeking to work with Republicans on combating antisemitism, but reiterated their belief Trump’s overtures are “simply a means to an end” for the mogul to trash his ideological opposition.

They called on the president to respond by Wednesday of next week with data and details as to why specific colleges were targeted for a federal funding freeze, and what the calculus was for doing so.

“In the case of Harvard specifically, what specific charges had the administration made against Harvard in regards to antisemitism? Please describe your charges in specific detail, including naming specific cases and why you believe the steps that Harvard has already taken to strengthen response to antisemitism are insufficient,” they wrote.

They also said Trump has targeted Harvard Medical School, lauding its cancer research in questioning that particular decision.

“What is your legal justification … when almost every legal scholar has ruled that you have no basis for doing this?” they concluded.

Separately, Schiff said during a debate last year that he also received several antisemitic attacks, particularly online.

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“I take this issue very personally,” he said. “What’s happening on college campuses, I think, is terrifying.”

In February, Rosen joined Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., to introduce the Antisemitism Awareness Act.

“Antisemitism is on the rise across the nation, particularly on college campuses, and Congress has a responsibility to do everything in its power to fight back against this hate,” Rosen said in a statement.

Schatz, who is seen as a prime potential successor to Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin, D-Ill., as Democrats’ No. 2 caucus leader, tweeted in 2023 that he opposes antisemitism and Islamophobia.

“Criticism of Israel is not antisemitism. Wanting to disable Hamas is not Islamophobia. Wanting to protect civilians is neither. I may delete this once my comments become a mess,” he wrote.

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Earlier this year, Schumer published a book, “Antisemitism in America: A Warning,” about his own life experiences.

In a tweet about the letter, Blumenthal called antisemitism “a real & horrific threat on campuses — & must be fought — but it should not be exploited as a pretext to target universities & silence dissent.”

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for a response to the joint letter.

In a statement, White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers said Trump “has done more to fight anti-Semitism and preserve free speech than any other president in American history. The Trump administration will continue fighting to preserve free speech for American citizens and push back against the anti-Semitic violence that plagued our college campuses on Joe Bidens watch.”