2 months ago
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PULSE POINTS:
❓What Happened: The Trump administration is freezing $2 billion in federal funding for Harvard University after the Ivy League institution rejected a set of government policy conditions aimed at addressing anti-Semitic incidents and pro-Hamas protests on its campus.
👥 Who’s Involved: Harvard University, President Donald J. Trump, Harvard President Alan Garber, pro-Hamas demonstrators, and federal officials.
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📍 Where & When: Harvard University in Boston, Massachusetts, and the White House in Washington, D.C., with the funding freeze announced late on April 14, 2025.
💬 Key Quote: “Harvard’s statement today reinforces the troubling entitlement mindset that is endemic in our nation’s most prestigious universities and colleges,” the Trump administration’s Joint Task Force to combat anti-Semitism said in a statement.
⚠️ Impact: The university is being hit with a freeze on $2.2 billion in multi-year federal grants, and the Trump administration has canceled a $60 million contract with Harvard.
IN FULL:
Late Monday evening, the Trump administration suspended $2.2 billion in multi-year federal grants for Harvard University after the Ivy League academic institution rejected funding conditions U.S. President Donald J. Trump proposed to address anti-Semitism on campus. Earlier Monday, Harvard issued a statement declaring the Trump White House’s push for policy changes at the university to be “illegal.” The Trump White House had previously announced it would condition funding for Harvard on the school adequately addressing anti-Semitic incidents on campus, ensuring viewpoint diversity in its academic programs, and assisting with the federal screening of foreign students for pro-terrorism and extremist ideologies.
“Harvard’s statement today reinforces the troubling entitlement mindset that is endemic in our nation’s most prestigious universities and colleges—that federal investment does not come with the responsibility to uphold civil rights laws,” the Joint Task Force to combat anti-Semitism announced in a statement yesterday evening, continuing: “The disruption of learning that has plagued campuses in recent years is unacceptable. The harassment of Jewish students is intolerable. It is time for elite universities to take the problem seriously and commit to meaningful change if they wish to continue receiving taxpayer support.”
The statement concluded: “The Joint Task Force to combat anti-Semitism is announcing a freeze on $2.2 billion in multi-year grants and $60M in multi-year contract value to Harvard University.”
Universities across the United States have seen an explosion in anti-Semitic incidents and the harassment of Jewish students by pro-Hamas demonstrators. In several instances, protests escalated to the point where demonstrators would surround and trap Jewish students in university classrooms and libraries. In recent weeks, the Trump administration has moved to revoke student visas for hundreds of foreign students over their participation in the campus demonstrations and for public pro-Hamas statements.
PULSE POINTS:
❓What Happened: A 17-year-old in Wisconsin is accused of killing his mother and stepfather to obtain resources and freedom in order to execute a plan to assassinate President Donald J. Trump and overthrow the U.S. federal government.
👥 Who’s Involved: Nikita Casap, his stepfather Donald Mayer, his mother Tatiana Casap, Waukesha County, Wisconsin authorities, and federal investigators.
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📍 Where & When: The incident occurred in Waukesha County, Wisconsin, with the arrests made in March. A preliminary court hearing on Casap’s state charges was held on April 9, with the 17-year-old set to be formally arraigned on May 7.
💬 Key Quote: “He was in touch with other parties about his plan to kill the President and overthrow the government,” investigators said in the affidavit.
⚠️ Impact: The incident prompted federal charges in addition to the state counts.
IN FULL:
Authorities in Wisconsin have charged a teenager with the murder of his mother and stepfather, citing intentions to use their assets to execute plans to assassinate President Donald J. Trump and overthrow the federal government. Nikita Casap, 17, faces multiple state charges, including two counts of first-degree murder following the March incident. Authorities located the bodies of Donald Mayer, 51, and Tatiana Casap, 35, within their Waukesha County residence.
Prosecutors also charged Casap with hiding bodies, theft, and identity theft. In addition to the state prosecution, the 17-year-old will also likely face federal charges, according to affidavits filed by federal investigators. Based on a review of a manifesto allegedly written by the teenager, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) believes Casap likely communicated with other individuals regarding his plot—suggesting the possibility of a broader conspiracy.
A search warrant on the teenager’s phone uncovered affiliations with “The Order of Nine Angles,” a group associated with extremist and racially charged ideology. In his manifesto, Casap allegedly advocates for violent actions to “save the white race” alongside imagery revering Adolf Hitler.
“He was in touch with other parties about his plan to kill the President and overthrow the government of the United States. And he paid for, at least in part, a drone and explosives to be used as a weapon of mass destruction to commit an attack,” federal investigators state in the affidavit. They add: “Other parties, with whom Casap was in contact, appear to have been aware of his plan and action and to have provided assistance to Casap in carrying them out.”
During the 2024 election, President Trump was the target of two assassination attempts, with the first would-be assassin striking the America First leader’s ear with a bullet during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. The second assassination attempt involved pro-Ukraine activist Ryan Routh, who was discovered with a rifle hiding along the treeline at Trump International Golf Club, only a short distance from the America First leader.
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