The Great American University Shakedown

"With each new resolution agreement, it becomes clearer that the Trump administration intends to base the government's relationship with higher education on extortion. In its recently cut deal, Northwestern University will pay the Treasury $75 million in exchange for about $800 million in congressionally approved research funding it had already secured. NU now joins Columbia on the list of institutions that have paid fees to the federal government-Columbia's deal included a $200 million payment to the Treasury over three years."

"But nothing in the agreement precludes the government from leveraging federal research funding to extract certain political wins from the university again. The government didn't even need evidence Northwestern violated any federal laws to revoke its federal funding. Officials offered no conclusions from the three investigations into antisemitism on campus the Departments of Education, Justice and Health and Human Services launched. With the punitive withholding of federal funds, the institution is being punished before it's proven guilty."

"In the grand scheme of things, $75 million is chump change for Northwestern. It's a fraction of the research funding that was at risk and barely makes a dent in the institution's $14.3 billion endowment. It's less than two months' worth of the up to $40 million the institution said it was paying every month to supplement lost research funding. The payment was, according to interim president Henry Bienen, "the best and most certain method to restore our federal funding, both now and in the future.""

The federal government is using threats to withhold research funding to compel payments from universities. Northwestern agreed to pay $75 million to restore about $800 million in congressionally approved research grants; Columbia previously agreed to pay $200 million over three years. The payment is small compared with Northwestern's $14.3 billion endowment and the value of at-risk funding. The agreement offers no protection against future leverage of federal grants for political aims. Federal officials revoked funding without issuing conclusions from investigations into campus antisemitism. Lengthy, costly litigation incentivizes institutions to accept settlements rather than fight in court.

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