The Trump administration's Department of Justice (DOJ) launched a coordinated attack on the University of California system, specifically targeting the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), over allegations of antisemitism. The DOJ's efforts were aimed at imposing its will on the university and forcing it to comply with conservative policies.
According to former DOJ insiders, the agency dispatched teams of career civil rights lawyers to California in March, pressuring them to "find" evidence backing a preordained conclusion that the UC system and four of its campuses had illegally tolerated antisemitism. The team's recommendations included filing a lawsuit against UCLA, which was later deemed weak by the lawyers themselves.
Despite being aware of the lack of strong evidence, investigators continued their work under pressure from DOJ political appointees. A senior trial attorney in the civil rights division stated that the goal was "not to conduct a thorough, unbiased investigation" but rather to file a complaint and threaten the university.
The Trump administration's campaign against elite universities was fueled by its desire to discredit liberal institutions and undermine the Democratic Party. The DOJ's actions were also influenced by the appointment of Pam Bondi as attorney general, who issued directives requiring "zealous advocacy" for Trump's executive orders and attacks on all forms of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
In May 2024, the Justice Department announced plans to visit 10 US campuses, including UCLA and UC Berkeley, to assess whether remedial action was warranted. The task force declared that students and employees in "the entire UC system" were being harassed due to antisemitism, and the DOJ threatened to sue, bankrupt, and take away every single federal dollar from such schools.
The investigation into UC's handling of antisemitism was cut short by DOJ political appointees, who demanded a rapid completion within a month. The team had initially warned that they couldn't produce a case that could stand up in court within such a timeframe.
Despite the lack of evidence, investigators focused on UCLA, which had experienced several incidents of antisemitism amid protests over Israel's military response to Gaza. The campus had taken extensive measures to address antisemitism, including a broad civil rights settlement with the Department of Education in the Biden administration.
In July 2024, the Trump administration announced that it had found UCLA's response to the encampment had been "deliberately indifferent" to a hostile environment for Jewish and Israeli students. The Justice Department demanded a $1.2 billion settlement, including policy changes on admissions practices, screening of foreign students, and transgender students' access to bathrooms.
The University of California system has found itself caught between the Trump administration's demands and those of its new constituency in California, which opposes any hint of capitulation. The system's leaders have resisted calls for confrontation, wary of provoking retaliation against other campuses under investigation.
In a recent court ruling, Judge Rita F. Lin barred all of the Trump administration's actual and threatened moves to punish UC, citing that the playbook used by the DOJ illegally used civil rights investigations and funding cuts as a way of "bringing universities to their knees and forcing them to change their ideological tune."
According to former DOJ insiders, the agency dispatched teams of career civil rights lawyers to California in March, pressuring them to "find" evidence backing a preordained conclusion that the UC system and four of its campuses had illegally tolerated antisemitism. The team's recommendations included filing a lawsuit against UCLA, which was later deemed weak by the lawyers themselves.
Despite being aware of the lack of strong evidence, investigators continued their work under pressure from DOJ political appointees. A senior trial attorney in the civil rights division stated that the goal was "not to conduct a thorough, unbiased investigation" but rather to file a complaint and threaten the university.
The Trump administration's campaign against elite universities was fueled by its desire to discredit liberal institutions and undermine the Democratic Party. The DOJ's actions were also influenced by the appointment of Pam Bondi as attorney general, who issued directives requiring "zealous advocacy" for Trump's executive orders and attacks on all forms of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
In May 2024, the Justice Department announced plans to visit 10 US campuses, including UCLA and UC Berkeley, to assess whether remedial action was warranted. The task force declared that students and employees in "the entire UC system" were being harassed due to antisemitism, and the DOJ threatened to sue, bankrupt, and take away every single federal dollar from such schools.
The investigation into UC's handling of antisemitism was cut short by DOJ political appointees, who demanded a rapid completion within a month. The team had initially warned that they couldn't produce a case that could stand up in court within such a timeframe.
Despite the lack of evidence, investigators focused on UCLA, which had experienced several incidents of antisemitism amid protests over Israel's military response to Gaza. The campus had taken extensive measures to address antisemitism, including a broad civil rights settlement with the Department of Education in the Biden administration.
In July 2024, the Trump administration announced that it had found UCLA's response to the encampment had been "deliberately indifferent" to a hostile environment for Jewish and Israeli students. The Justice Department demanded a $1.2 billion settlement, including policy changes on admissions practices, screening of foreign students, and transgender students' access to bathrooms.
The University of California system has found itself caught between the Trump administration's demands and those of its new constituency in California, which opposes any hint of capitulation. The system's leaders have resisted calls for confrontation, wary of provoking retaliation against other campuses under investigation.
In a recent court ruling, Judge Rita F. Lin barred all of the Trump administration's actual and threatened moves to punish UC, citing that the playbook used by the DOJ illegally used civil rights investigations and funding cuts as a way of "bringing universities to their knees and forcing them to change their ideological tune."
this is some crazy stuff. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the Trump admin's attack on UCLA over antisemitism allegations... like, can't they just focus on actual crimes instead of going after institutions? 
and what's with the DOJ's tactics, pressuring their own lawyers into finding evidence that doesn't even exist? it's like they're trying to bully a university into conforming to some twisted ideology. 
it's just so messed up.
justice for UCLA! 
Can you believe the audacity of the Trump admin?! They're basically bullying those poor uni folks into conforming to their extreme right-wing views. I mean, what's next? 
The DOJ's tactics are super dodgy, using "career civil rights lawyers" as puppets on strings for these conservative hacks... it's like they're more interested in scoring points against libs than actually doing some real justice. 
And let's be real, this whole thing reeks of desperation - trying to discredit liberal institutions and undermine the Democratic Party with these baseless allegations of antisemitism. 
It's just a thinly veiled attack on diversity and inclusivity. I'm so glad that Judge Rita F. Lin called out their playbook for what it is - a shameful attempt to silence marginalized voices and force them into line. 
And now they're threatening to sue and take away all their funding if they don't comply with these demands. It's just crazy.
like, can't they just leave us alone? and it's all about politics, not actually addressing the real issues of antisemitism... UCLA already took steps to address it, but the admin just wants to punish them anyway 
the whole thing is so unfair 
what's next for these elite universities? The Trump admin is still trying to force UCLA to comply with conservative policies despite lack of evidence. It's like they think they can just bully their way into getting what they want... 
the fact that Pam Bondi was appointed AG already says a lot about the direction this is heading. 10 more campuses are on the list, and I'm worried for the students and staff at those places 
the DOJ's actions are basically trying to intimidate these schools into submission... 
this is insane, can you believe they're threatening a whole university system over politics? UCLA's taken concrete steps to address antisemitism, like that big civil rights settlement, but still the DOJ comes after them with an axe. It's all about discrediting liberal institutions and pushing their own agenda... 
. We need to support our universities in standing firm against these trumped-up claims and demand real change from our policymakers 
. The future of education is worth fighting for, and we can't let the politics of fear and divisiveness dictate how we learn and grow 
. now let's hope the trump admin doesn't keep trying to bully these institutions into submission 
guess that settles it for now...
. I mean, come on, who doesn't love a good power play? The Trump admin is basically trying to strong-arm these universities into submission, and if that doesn't work, they'll just sue them into oblivion 
. And if the universities aren't willing to take those allegations seriously, then maybe they shouldn't be so quick to bash the DOJ 
. I mean, have you seen those student protests? They were getting pretty wild 
.