John Fetterman backs Trump axing $400M Columbia grant, says school ‘let antisemitism run amok’

U.S. Sen. John Fetterman has come out in support of the Trump administration’s decision to strip federal funding from Columbia University for allowing Jewish students to be terrorized.

“Columbia let antisemitism run amok to cater to lunatic fringe and paid provocateurs,” he tweeted Friday. “Leadership allowed those a–holes to take over the campus and terrorize Jewish students. Now, Columbia pays for its failure and I support that.”

Look:

Columbia let antisemitism run amok to cater to lunatic fringe and paid provocateurs.

Leadership allowed those assholes to take over the campus and terrorize Jewish students.

Now, Columbia pays for its failure and I support that. pic.twitter.com/k1kNYfnsMu

— U.S. Senator John Fetterman (@SenFettermanPA) March 7, 2025

The unsurprising statement from Fetterman came a few short hours after the Trump administration revoked $400 million in federal funding for Columbia University over the “persistent harassment of Jewish students” on its campus.

“Since October 7, Jewish students have faced relentless violence, intimidation, and anti-Semitic harassment on their campuses – only to be ignored by those who are supposed to protect them,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a statement

“Universities must comply with all federal antidiscrimination laws if they are going to receive federal funding. For too long, Columbia has abandoned that obligation to Jewish students studying on its campus. Today, we demonstrate to Columbia and other universities that we will not tolerate their appalling inaction any longer,” she added.

NEWS: ED & fellow members of the Task Force to Combat Antisemitism (@TheJusticeDept, @HHSGov, & @USGSA) announced the cancelation of ~$400M federal grants to @Columbia due to their continued inaction to protect Jewish students from antisemitic harassment. https://t.co/BUxTNm0T3Z pic.twitter.com/T8lQtbRqlD

— U.S. Department of Education (@usedgov) March 7, 2025

The administration stressed though that this is just the “initial” round of cuts and that more cuts in funding — the school reportedly holds over $5 billion in federal grant commitments — may be pursued in the future based on how Columbia University proceeds going forward.

“Freezing the funds is one of the tools we are using to respond to this spike in anti-Semitism. This is only the beginning,” Department of Justice attorney Leo Terrell said in a statement.

“Canceling these taxpayer funds is our strongest signal yet that the Federal Government is not going to be party to an educational institution like Columbia that does not protect Jewish students and staff,” he added.

Columbia University has tolerated pro-Hamas “protests” on campus ever since the Oct. 7th terror attack on Israel. The problem is that the so-called “protests” have often involved illegal behavior, including vandalism, the commandeering of buildings, and of course the persistent harassment and targeting of Jews.

Case in point:

Jewish student SURROUNDED and ATTACKED by out of control mob after he attempted to enter the Columbia University campus.

Columbia descended into chaos last night as anarchist mobs stormed the building, smashing windows with hammers.

pic.twitter.com/PRMZQcKwmd

— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) April 30, 2024

Happening Now: Terror supporters at Columbia University have taken over the library, kicking out the students who were studying, and are currently calling for an intifada, as they occupy the library.

Columbia should not hesitate and call the NYPD to arrest them all. pic.twitter.com/4wZamvTPqt

— Eyal Yakoby (@EYakoby) March 5, 2025

To the school’s credit, it did eventually convene a task force that found that Jewish students have indeed been harassed, excluded, and discriminated against during these “protests.”

“While mourning Hamas’s unspeakable atrocities on October 7, some Jewish and Israeli Columbia [students] have been the object of racist epithets and graffiti, antisemitic tropes, and confrontational and unwelcome questions, while others have found their participation in some student groups that have nothing to do with politics to be increasingly uncomfortable,” the task force’s final report reads.

“Israeli Columbia [students] have been criticized and stereotyped for serving in the military, something most Israelis are required to do. Some Jewish students have felt isolated in supporting Israel. … [M]any have heard chants at protests like ‘Globalize the Intifada’ and ‘Death to the Zionist State’ as calls for violence against them and their families,” it continues.

A great follow-up by CNN @OmarJimenez and @jaketapper to our cover story today in @haaretzcom about disturbing new testimonies of discrimination and harassment of Jews at Columbia University pic.twitter.com/oSsF6IZCVK

— Lee Yaron (@LeeYaron) June 17, 2024

The latest “protest” occurred late last month when pro-Hamas students commandeered a Barnard College building to protest two students being expelled for distributing flyers dripping with violent, antisemitic hate.

The protest began around 4:00 pm on Feb. 26th in Barnard College’s Milbank Hall, where masked activists pushed past a security guard whom they reportedly injured, and then began chanting “there is only one solution, intifada revolution” as they performed a sit-in.

The school later accused the activists of having hurt the security guard. They said in a statement to The New York Times that the activists had “physically assaulted a Barnard employee, sending them to the hospital.”

Senior Staff Writer
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V. Saxena is a staff writer for BizPac Review with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University.

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