Six congressional committees have launched an investigation into antisemitism at 10 leading American colleges and are considering the possibility of withholding billions in federal funding from these schools, according to a series of letters obtained by the Washington Examiner.
House Education and Workforce Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx (R-NC) and Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) were among the Republican lawmakers who sent letters to the leaders of Barnard College, Columbia University, the University of California, Berkeley, UCLA, Harvard, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Northwestern University, Penn, Rutgers, and Cornell as part of their investigation.
House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith (R-MO), Energy and Commerce Committee Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Oversight and Accountability Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY), and Science, Space, & Technology Committee Chairman Frank Lucas (R-OK) are also part of this effort.
“The U.S. House of Representatives is deeply concerned by ongoing and pervasive acts of antisemitic harassment and intimidation,” the Republican leaders wrote to each school in separate letters. “Failing to act decisively to ensure a safe learning environment for all students would be a grave dereliction of your responsibilities as President.”
Each of these schools has been in the national spotlight for large pro-Palestinian protests held on their respective campuses. To varying degrees, these demonstrations have disrupted college activities and raised concerns among Jewish students about their safety.
“The House of Representatives will not countenance the use of federal funds to indoctrinate students into hateful, antisemitic, anti-American supporters of terrorism,” the GOP leaders wrote in their letters.
“Investigations into campus antisemitism by the Committee on Education and the Workforce and the Committee on Ways and Means have been expanded into a Congress-wide probe across all relevant jurisdictions to address this national crisis,” they added.
The House is investigating whether these institutions violated Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which requires federally funded institutions to safeguard minority rights, including those of Jews.
For these schools, federal funds are essential. In 2023, for example, Harvard received $676 million, making up 66% of its revenue, and Northwestern received $693 million.
The Committee on Education and the Workforce has been investigating antisemitic harassment on these campuses for months.
In mid-May, the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability joined this effort. They requested federal authorities provide access to internal information on nearly two dozen nonprofit groups funding pro-Palestinian protests across several campuses. These groups could be violating anti-money laundering and terrorism laws.
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The Committee on Ways and Means is involved due to its jurisdiction over the tax-exempt status granted to these institutions. The House Judiciary Committee oversees civil liberties and criminal law enforcement.
Additionally, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce controls the federal agencies that offer grants to universities. The House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology oversees research and development projects at many of these schools.