Harvard is playing with fire.
In a move that’s raising eyebrows across the country, Harvard University is working around the Trump administration’s America First immigration policies—partnering with Canada to keep foreign students enrolled, even if they’re barred from returning to the United States.
The University of Toronto has agreed to take in select international Harvard students who may be blocked from reentering the U.S. due to national security-focused visa restrictions championed by President Trump.
This backdoor deal comes after the Department of Homeland Security launched action against Harvard for allegedly hiding protest activity and disciplinary records involving foreign students. The university reportedly refused to hand over critical behavioral data, including video of campus protests involving visa holders—some of which featured anti-American and anti-Israel rhetoric.
Although a judge temporarily halted the DHS enforcement, Harvard quickly unveiled its plan B—a cross-border scheme allowing students to finish coursework from Canadian soil while still receiving an elite U.S. education.
“Even if they can’t get into the U.S., they’ll still get a Harvard diploma,” said Jeremy Weinstein, dean of Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government.
The joint program with the University of Toronto’s Munk School would allow international students to stay on track, taking classes taught by both U.S. and Canadian faculty. But critics say the plan prioritizes global interests over American security—and protects Harvard’s massive revenue stream from international tuition dollars.
Meanwhile, Harvard is under growing financial pressure.
Weinstein admitted in a staff-wide email that the university is now dealing with “massive federal funding cuts,” “a substantial tax hike on our endowment,” and what he called “unprecedented headwinds.” These challenges come in the wake of Harvard’s failure to rein in campus antisemitism and pro-Hamas activism that erupted during the Israel-Hamas conflict.
President Trump has called for a crackdown on elite universities that allow taxpayer dollars to support divisive, anti-American agendas. Harvard has now become a prime example.
More than 50% of Kennedy School students are foreign nationals, according to school data. A total of 739 students from 92 countries are enrolled in programs meant to “shape future leaders in public policy and government.”
But who’s leading who—and whose interests are they really serving?
With Harvard’s loyalty increasingly in question, and U.S. taxpayers footing the bill, this latest stunt only reinforces the growing divide between globalist institutions and the America First movement.