I guess we'll see, but it doesn't sound like Linda is looking for a three-round match in the Octagon.
Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said today she spoke to the presidents of Columbia and Harvard about “how we could make sure that the universities were abiding by the law,”
insisting the Trump administration’s recent demands are not about freedom of speech.
“I made it very clear that these are not First Amendment infractions. This is civil rights. This is making sure that students on all campuses can come and learn and be safe … and that is why we have had these funds either withheld or frozen during this period of time of negotiation,” she said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”
The education secretary emphasized that
the letter Harvard University received from the administration that outlined a slew of demands tied to federal funding
was a “point of negotiation.”
Harvard President Alan M. Garber said last week the demands in the letter were “unprecedented” and made “to control the Harvard community,” adding that the university “will not surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights.”
On Monday,
Harvard sued the Trump administration over the government’s funding freeze, calling it “unlawful and beyond the government’s authority.”
McMahon said today that the letter was not a “final offer,” saying she hoped the university will “come back to the table.”
McMahon said she’s “pleased” with negotiations with Columbia University — which made
policy changes in March in response to Trump administration demands — though she said the negotiations are not finalized.
McMahon also addressed the news that the Department of Education will
restart collecting federal student loans in default on May 5, telling CNBC, “It is not fair that other people are having to assume this, you know, this burden that other taxpayers are paying for these loans.”
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