President Donald Trump’s order to ban international student enrollment at Harvard University was blocked by a federal court late on Thursday. This halt, ordered by U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs, presents the latest escalation between the Ivy League university and Trump.
Judge Burroughs ruled that Harvard would suffer “immediate and irreparable” injury as a result of the order, and suggested that the Trump administration may have violated constitutional rights such as the First Amendment. (RELATED: Harvard’s Sacred Cash Cows)
Trump’s proclamation was designed to suspend foreign individuals from enrolling at Harvard, particularly those with F, M, or J visas. These visa types refer to academic students, vocational students, and exchange visitors. (RELATED: Trump Suspends Harvard’s Foreign Student Visa Program Over National Security Risks)
Exceptions to the proclamation include students under permanent immigration visas or green cards. Since the order was designed to “safeguard national security,” the administration stated that “aliens whose entry is deemed in the national interest” would be exempt from removal.
Harvard has contended that the proclamation is a retaliatory measure in response to the university’s refusal to comply with previous administration demands, such as changes to its governance and curriculum. (RELATED: The Fall of Harvard: How America’s Oldest University Became Its Most Expensive Liability)
Trump has defended the order on grounds of national security concerns, which he has called an “unacceptable risk.” His order also cites alleged noncompliance with federal regulations by the university. Trump stated, “Admission into the United States to attend, conduct research, or teach at our Nation’s institutions of higher education is a privilege granted by our Government, not a guarantee,” he said. He added that such a privilege is “necessarily tied to the host institution’s compliance and commitment to following Federal law.”
The administration has specifically cited failure to provide information about foreign students involved in misconduct.
Trump’s specific legal defense can be found in 8 U.S.C. § 1182(f), which states, “Whenever the President finds that the entry of any aliens or of any class of aliens into the United States would be detrimental to the interests of the United States, he may by proclamation, and for such period as he shall deem necessary, suspend the entry of all aliens or any class of aliens as immigrants or nonimmigrants.”
An issue the administration may face in court relates to the U.S. code’s referral to “any class of aliens.” Ilya Shapiro, director of constitutional studies at the Manhattan Institute, told The American Spectator that “I’m not sure how ‘foreigners attending Harvard’ can be a class of people who can be denied entry,” and that “students don’t become more or less threatening to national security depending on which school they attend.” This will require the Trump administration to make specific arguments as to the severity of the security threat posed by foreign students.
The block by Judge Burroughs is a temporary measure, which means that international students will continue to enter and remain in the U.S. to attend Harvard University until a scheduled hearing on June 16.
At this hearing, the court will decide whether to reinstate Trump’s ban or to impose a preliminary injunction to extend protections for the foreign students.
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