The Latest: Harvard heads to court in $2.6B lawsuit against Trump administration

Harvard University is in federal court Monday to make the case that President Donald Trump’s administration illegally cut $2.6 billion from the storied college. It’s a pivotal moment in the school’s battle against the federal government.

If U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs decides in the university’s favor, the ruling would reverse a series of funding freezes that later became outright cuts as the administration escalated its fight with the nation’s oldest and wealthiest university. Such a ruling, if it stands, would revive Harvard’s sprawling scientific and medical research operation and hundreds of projects.

Harvard’s lawsuit accuses the administration of waging a retaliation campaign against the university after it rejected a series of demands in an April 11 letter from a federal antisemitism task force.

Here’s the latest:

Nearly 300 past and present NASA employees have signed a letter urging the space agency’s interim chief to resist the Trump administration’s proposed budget cuts.

The so-called Voyager Declaration pointing out “rapid and wasteful changes” at NASA over the past six months was addressed Monday to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who was named NASA’s acting administrator earlier this month.

Six former astronauts were among those signing the letter, which noted that the proposed budget cuts “have or threaten to waste public resources, compromise human safety, weaken national security, and undermine the core NASA mission.” Science missions, in particular, are big targets.

NASA spokeswoman Bethany Stevens said any reductions in workforce won’t “compromise on safety.” The space agency is focused on high-profile missions, she said, and “not on sustaining outdated or lower-priority missions.”

U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs in Boston did not issue a ruling from the bench on Harvard’s request to restore billions in funding cuts.

Her ruling is expected later in writing.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reiterated America’s commitment to “achieving peace through strength” in the Asia-Pacific region.

While in Washington this week, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will also meet with Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Marcos told Hegseth that a mutual defense treaty “continues to be the cornerstone” of the two countries’ relationship. The governments are boosting security ties in the face of China’s increasingly aggressive actions in the South China Sea.

The U.S. has repeatedly warned that it’s obligated to defend the Philippines – its oldest treaty ally in Asia – if Philippine forces, ships or aircraft come under armed attack, including in the South China Sea.

On this trip, Marcos also is expected to discuss a possible trade deal ahead of a Aug. 1 deadline, when Trump has threatened to impose 20% tariffs on products from the Philippines.

U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs said during Monday’s hearing that the government had provided no documentation or procedure to “suss out” whether Harvard had taken appropriate action to combat alleged antisemitism on campus.

“The consequences of that in terms of constitutional law are staggering,” Burroughs said. “I don’t think you can justify a contract action based on impermissible suppression of speech. Where do I have that wrong?”

It’s not clear when Burroughs might issue a ruling on Harvard’s request to restore government funding for the university.

However, even with the nation’s largest endowment at $53 billion, the university has warned it can’t absorb the full cost of the federal cuts.

In court filings, Harvard has said the government “fails to explain how the termination of funding for research to treat cancer, support veterans, and improve national security addresses antisemitism.”

The Trump administration denies the cuts were made in retaliation, saying the grants were under review even before the April demand letter was sent. It argues the government has wide discretion to cancel contracts for policy reasons.

A lawyer for Harvard opened the hearing by saying the Trump administration violated the university’s First Amendment rights by cutting more than $2.6 billion in federal funding.

Steven Lehotsky said the government conditioned research grants on Harvard, “ceding control” to the government over what is appropriate for students and faculty to say.

A U.S. envoy doubled down on Washington’s support for Syria’s new government, saying Monday there is “no Plan B” to working with it to unite the country still reeling from years of civil war and wracked by new sectarian violence.

In an exclusive interview with The Associated Press, Tom Barrack also criticized Israel’s recent intervention in Syria, calling it poorly timed and saying it complicated efforts to stabilize the region.

Barrack is ambassador to Turkey and special envoy to Syria, with a short-term mandate in Lebanon. He spoke in Beirut following more than a week of clashes in Syria’s southern province of Sweida between militias of the Druze religious minority and Sunni Muslim Bedouin tribes.

Tom Barrack, who is ambassador to Turkey and special envoy to Syria and also has a short-term mandate in Lebanon, told The Associated Press that Israel’s intervention in the latest round of conflict in Syria had further complicated matters. (AP Video shot by Fadi Tawil; Production by Abby Sewell)

Syrian government forces intervened, ostensibly to restore order, but ended up siding with the Bedouins before withdrawing under a ceasefire agreement with Druze factions. Hundreds have been killed in the fighting, and some government fighters allegedly shot dead Druze civilians and burned and looted homes.

Neighboring Israel intervened last week on behalf of the Druze, who are seen as a loyal minority within Israel and often serve in its military. Israel launched dozens of strikes on convoys of government forces in Sweida and struck the Ministry of Defense headquarters in central Damascus.

Over the weekend, Barrack announced a ceasefire between Syria and Israel. Syrian government forces have redeployed in Sweida to halt renewed clashes between the Druze and Bedouins, and civilians from both sides were set to be evacuated Monday.

Trump is threatening to hold up a new stadium deal for Washington’s NFL team if it does not restore its old name of the Redskins, which was considered offensive to Native Americans.

Trump also said Sunday that he wants Cleveland’s baseball team to revert to its former name, the Indians, saying there was a “big clamoring for this” as well.

The Washington Commanders and Cleveland Guardians have had their current names since the 2022 seasons, and both have said they have no plans to change them back. Trump said the Washington football team would be “much more valuable” if it restored its old name. His latest interest in changing the name reflects his broader effort to roll back changes that followed a national debate on cultural sensitivity and racial justice.

The Commanders and the District of Columbia government announced a deal earlier this year to build a new home for the football team at the site of the old RFK Stadium, the place the franchise called home for more than three decades.