Trump Threatens To Cut Federal Funds For Colleges And Universities

The NPR Politics Podcast

NPR

Politics, Daily News, News

4.5 • 24.9K Ratings

🗓️ 8 April 2025

⏱️ 19 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Dozens of American universities are under investigation by the Trump administration for use of DEI initiatives and alleged anti-Semitism on campuses. The message is clear: comply with federal executive orders and policy changes or lose federal funding. How are educational leaders responding?

This episode: White House correspondent Asma Khalid, correspondent Elissa Nadworny, and senior national political correspondent Mara Liasson.

The podcast is produced by Bria Suggs & Kelli Wessinger and edited by Casey Morell. Our executive producer is Muthoni Muturi.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	This message comes from MintMobile.
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0:15.9	This is Natalia from Chicago, Illinois.
0:18.5	I'm not currently climbing a mountain, caring for really cute kittens,
0:22.9	or searching for birds in a foreign country. Instead, I'm standing in my kitchen, glaring at my
0:28.5	oven timer, and waiting for my dinner to be ready. This podcast was recorded at 12.36 p.m. Eastern
0:35.5	time on Tuesday, April 8th of 2025.
0:39.4	Things may have changed by the time you hear this, but hopefully I will have finished my salmon and fresh spring asparagus.
0:45.7	Enjoy the show.
0:49.9	I love that. So real, because that's how I listen to podcasts. Sitting in my kitchen,
0:55.7	waiting for the oven to be done. Hey there, it's the NPR Politics Podcast. I'm Asma Khalid. I cover the White House.
1:02.6	And I'm Mara Liason, senior national political correspondent.
1:06.1	American universities are under immense pressure from this White House. A number of schools are under
1:11.9	investigation for claims of anti-Semitism on campus and DEI initiatives. And the Trump
1:17.2	administration is threatening to cut a lot of federal funds to those schools. So today on the show,
1:24.1	we dig into the Trump administration's threats to American universities.
1:28.1	And to help us do that, we're joined by a very special guest, our colleague Alyssa Nadwarnie.
1:33.1	She's been covering this story. And Alyssa, thank you so much for coming on the podcast.
1:36.7	I'm so happy to be here.
	...

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