Trump Orders Crackdown on Campus Antisemitism, Threatens Deportations

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump signed an executive order Wednesday aimed at combating antisemitism on college campuses, including a directive to deport non-citizen students involved in pro-Palestinian protests. The order also targets federal funding for schools teaching critical race theory or radical gender ideology.

The order, detailed in a White House fact sheet obtained by Fox News, mandates immediate action by the Department of Justice to prosecute antisemitic acts and requires federal agencies to identify legal tools to combat antisemitism within 60 days. It also threatens to revoke student visas of individuals supporting Hamas or engaging in antisemitic activities.

“It shall be the policy of the United States to combat anti-Semitism vigorously, using all available and appropriate legal tools, to prosecute, remove, or otherwise hold to account the perpetrators of unlawful anti-Semitic harassment and violence,” the order states.

The move follows months of pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses, including Columbia University, where antisemitic incidents were reported after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel. House Republicans have urged stricter policies against antisemitism, including conditioning federal aid to colleges.

Trump’s order also reinstates a 2020 directive protecting American monuments and statues, citing recent vandalism of federal property by pro-Hamas activists. Additionally, it establishes a task force to plan the 250th anniversary of American independence in 2026.

Critics argue the order could violate First Amendment rights. “Deporting non-citizens on the basis of their political speech would be unconstitutional,” said Carrie DeCell, senior staff attorney at Columbia University’s Knight First Amendment Institute.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has threatened legal action if the order is implemented. Meanwhile, Trump’s selection of Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations signals continued support for Israel.

Stefanik, a vocal critic of campus antisemitism, gained attention for grilling Ivy League administrators over their handling of antisemitic incidents. Her questioning led to the resignations of Harvard‘s Claudine Gay and Penn‘s Liz Magill in late 2023.

The order comes amid a federal judge’s temporary pause on Trump’s freeze of federal grants and loans, which was rescinded Wednesday. Trump previously threatened to cut funding from cities failing to address anti-police riots during his first term.