Newsom blasts $300M UCLA funding freeze as “cruel manipulation”

Los Angeles, California – The Trump administration has suspended hundreds of millions of dollars in federal research funding to the University of California, Los Angeles, citing allegations of antisemitism and violations of civil rights laws. The move has sparked strong condemnation from California Governor Gavin Newsom, who called it a dangerous politicization of legitimate concerns about discrimination.

The Department of Justice announced this week that it would halt funding from key agencies—including the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation—after determining that UCLA failed to protect Jewish students during a series of pro-Palestinian protests on campus. The decision comes amid heightened scrutiny of elite universities, as federal agencies investigate campus unrest tied to the war in Gaza and examine alleged race-based practices in admissions and hiring.

UCLA Chancellor Julio Frenk confirmed the freeze, saying he was informed that the Justice Department had paused grant disbursements due to unresolved civil rights complaints. Though he did not specify the total amount, estimates range between $200 million and $300 million in suspended funds, affecting ongoing research in medicine, science, and defense.

“Antisemitism has no place on our campus, nor does any form of discrimination,” Frenk said. “But this decision is not only a loss to the researchers who rely on critical grants. It is a loss for Americans whose work, health, and future depend on the groundbreaking work we do.”

Governor Newsom called the move “a cruel manipulation” of Jewish students’ legitimate concerns. “Freezing critical research funding for UCLA—dollars that were going to study invasive diseases, cure cancer, and build new defense technologies—makes our country less safe,” he said in a statement on Friday. He added that his office is reviewing the Justice Department’s findings, but raised concern that the action appears to be part of a broader effort to suppress academic institutions.

The funding freeze follows a $6 million settlement earlier this year between UCLA and a group of Jewish students and a faculty member who alleged the university failed to act during on-campus protests in spring 2024. According to The Los Angeles Times, university leaders had been bracing for this outcome as federal scrutiny intensified.

The Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the NIH, said it “will not fund institutions that promote antisemitism.” But critics argue the decision conflates dissent over foreign policy with discrimination, and risks setting a precedent where political disagreements can jeopardize scientific research.