Press Releases

WASHINGTON — Today, Speaker Johnson was joined by House Republican leadership and Committee Chairs to announce a new House-wide effort to crack down on antisemitism on college campuses and hold universities accountable for failing to protect Jewish students.
 
As part of the effort, the House will be looking into federal funding universities receive, the foreign student visa program that has allowed students sympathetic to terrorist groups to attend our schools, and the generous tax benefits universities enjoy. 
 
The effort will be led by the Education and Workforce Committee, the Ways and Means Committee, the Energy and Commerce Committee, the Judiciary Committee, the Oversight Committee, and the Science, Space and Technology Committee. 



Click here to watch the press conference
 
“Antisemitism is a virus and because the administration and woke university presidents aren't stepping in, we're seeing it spread,” said Speaker Johnson. “We must act, and House Republicans will speak to this fateful moment with moral clarity… and that's why today we're here to announce a House-wide effort to crack down on antisemitism on college campuses. Nearly every committee here has a role to play in these efforts to stop the madness that has ensued. The federal government plays a critical role in higher education, and we will use all the tools available to us to address this scourge.”
 
Education and Workforce Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx: “No stone must go unturned while buildings are being defaced. Campus greens are being captured, or graduations are being ruined. College is not a park for play acting juveniles or a battleground for radical activist. Everyone affiliated with these universities will receive a healthy dose of reality. Actions have consequences.”
 
Science, Space and Technology Committee Chairman Frank Lucas: “Universities that can't protect their students are not in compliance with their funding obligations through the National Science Foundation …As a part of the conditions of receiving taxpayer dollars through the NSF, universities must comply with Title Six of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, and national origin…It's time we review whether universities that allow the harassment, assault or intimidation, other Jewish students are in compliance with their federal obligations.”
 
Energy and Commerce Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers: “The Energy and Commerce Committee oversees agencies that dole out massive amounts of taxpayer funded research grants… We will be increasing our oversight of institutions that have received public funding and cracking down on those who are in violation of the Civil Rights Act.”
 
Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan: “On September 30, 2021, Secretary Mayorkas issued his guidelines for immigration enforcement. He said that national security threats are a reason to remove people from this country. The overriding question is simple: Are individuals advocating for the destruction of our dearest and closest ally, the State of Israel, engaged in this anti-Semitic behavior? And is that a national security threat? We think it is and we think the American people deserve answers.”
 
Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith: “At the Ways and Means Committee, we have been investigating the issue for months in a hearing last November, we examined the nexus between antisemitism tax exempt universities and terror financing networks…We've sent letters to university leaders demanding information on what disciplinary action, if any, that they have taken against those whose antisemitic activity violates campus policy. We've called on them to disclose any donations or funding they have received from foreign governments as well. Our investigation has already produced more than 1,500 pages of documents that we are now actively reviewing.”
 
Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer: “These radical protests threatening violence against Jews are anything but organic. It appears global elites are funding these hateful protests and pop-up tent cities. These are the same groups that fund other radical agendas, including diminishing America's energy production and pushing soft on crime policies that harm the American people. The House Oversight Committee will follow the money trail, expose it to the American people and seek to hold bad actors funding hate accountable.”