Donald Trump called Harvard University a "disaster"
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday called international students "troublemakers" and suggested a 15 per cent cap should be imposed on the admission of foreign students at Harvard University and other American higher education institutions. Speaking from the Oval Office, the President said he doesn't want "radical people" coming to the United States as students and "making trouble in our country."
"We don't want to see shopping centres explode. We don't want to see the kind of riots that you had, and I'll tell you what, many of those students didn't go anywhere, many of those students were troublemakers caused by the radical left," Trump told reporters.
Doubling down on his attack on Harvard, Trump said the elite institution would have to show its list of international students to the administration.
"Harvard has to show us their lists. They have foreign students - almost 31 per cent of their students. We want to know where those students come from, whether they are troublemakers, and what countries they come from....These countries aren't helping us. They're not investing in Harvard ... we are. So why would 31 per cent - why would a number so big...I think they should have a cap of maybe around 15 per cent, not 31 per cent," he said.
He further suggested that foreign students take up too much of the student body and block the way for Americans to get a better education.
"We have people [who] want to go to Harvard and other schools, [but] they can't get in because we have foreign students there. But I want to make sure that the foreign students are people who can love our country."
The President called Harvard a "disaster" and said students at the Ivy League institution are "totally anti-semitic"
"Harvard has been a disaster. They've taken $ 5 billion+... And by the way, they're totally anti-semitic at Harvard, and some other colleges too. It's been exposed, very exposed, and I think they're dealing very badly. Every time they fight, they lose another 250 million dollars... I think this is what everyone's coming up to me saying, we love the idea of trade schools with that kind of money and money from others, but money from them. You can have the best trade schools anywhere in the world... They can only be used for trade schools, and they'll teach people how to build AI," he said.
Trump's Crackdown On Universities
Trump, a Republican, took office in January, pledging a wide-ranging immigration crackdown. His administration has tried to revoke student visas and green cards of foreign students who participated in pro-Palestinian protests. He has undertaken an extraordinary effort to revamp private colleges and schools across the US, claiming they foster anti-American, Marxist and "radical left" ideologies.
At Harvard, the government has frozen billions of dollars in grants and official contracts and threatened to stop remaining funding if the institution does not disclose the information relating to its foreign students and implement administrative changes recommended by the government. Trump has also criticised Harvard for hiring prominent Democrats for teaching or leadership positions.
