EU Races to Secure US Trade Deal
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26 minutes ago
- Yahoo
A look at details of the settlement between Columbia University and the Trump administration
A deal between Columbia University and the Trump administration calls for the Ivy League school to pay more than $220 million to resolve multiple federal investigations into alleged violations of federal antidiscrimination laws. The agreement announced Wednesday clears the way for the school to keep billions of dollars in federal research money, including more than $400 million in grants canceled earlier this year. In return, the deal calls for a number of reforms in areas such as admissions, campus protests policies and its curriculum, including a number of changes the school agreed to previously in March. It is a document President Donald Trump's administration is calling a road map for settlements with other colleges accused of not doing enough to address campus antisemitism. Columbia University's acting president, Claire Shipman, said it protects the school's values and autonomy. Here's what's in the settlement: Financial payout The university will pay the federal government $200 million over three years. It will also pay $21 million to settle alleged civil rights violations against Jewish employees that occurred following the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel. A pledge to end diversity programs The university agreed to end programs 'that promote unlawful efforts to achieve race-based outcomes, quotes, diversity targets or similar efforts.' Columbia, as part of the agreement, must also issue regular reports to an independent monitor assuring that its programs 'do not promote unlawful DEI goals.' The agreement pushes Columbia to limit the consideration of race even beyond the Supreme Court's 2023 decision ending affirmative action. That decision left open the possibility that universities could consider an applicant's discussion of how their race affected their life, including in college application essays. The agreement says: 'Columbia may not use personal statements, diversity narratives, or any applicant reference to racial identity as a means to introduce or justify discrimination.' Faculty and curriculum changes Columbia agreed to review its Middle East curriculum and appoint new faculty to its Institute for Israel and Jewish Studies who will 'contribute to a robust and intellectually diverse academic environment.' To further support Jewish students on campus, the agreement calls for a new administrator to serve as a liaison on antisemitism issues. Reporting on international students Columbia University agreed to new vetting for prospective international students. The agreement calls for introducing 'questions designed to elicit their reasons for wishing to study in the United States' and establishes processes to make sure all students are committed to 'civil discourse.' The university also promised to provide the government with information, upon request, of disciplinary actions involving student-visa holders resulting in expulsions or suspensions. 'In several instances, the agreement codifies other practices or policies already in existence, or reviews already underway. We must always comply with government regulations regarding the international student visa program, for example,' Shipman said. The agreement says Columbia also will 'examine its business model and take steps to decrease financial dependence on international student enrollment.' International students make up about 40% of the enrollment at Columbia. Abiding Trump's interpretation on sex discrimination The agreement requires full compliance with the administration's interpretation of Title IX, the federal law barring sex discrimination in education. Trump officials have used the law to force the removal of transgender athletes from women's sports. Campus protest policies The deal calls for Columbia to abide restrictions it agreed to on campus protests, including a ban on face coverings used to conceal demonstrators' identity. It says protests inside academic buildings are not acceptable under the university's code of conduct. ___ The Associated Press' education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
27 minutes ago
Trump signs bill to cancel $9 billion in foreign aid, public broadcasting funding
WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump signed a bill Thursday canceling about $9 billion that had been approved for public broadcasting and foreign aid as Republicans look to lock in cuts to programs targeted by the White House's Department of Government Efficiency. The bulk of the spending being clawed back is for foreign assistance programs. About $1.1 billion was destined for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which finances NPR and PBS, though most of that money is distributed to more than 1,500 local public radio and television stations around the country. The White House had billed the legislation as a test case for Congress and said more such rescission packages would be on the way. Some Republicans were uncomfortable with the cuts, yet supported them anyway, wary of crossing Trump or upsetting his agenda. Democrats unanimously rejected the cuts but were powerless to stop them. The White House says the public media system is politically biased and an unnecessary expense. Conservatives particularly directed their ire at NPR and PBS. Lawmakers with large rural constituencies voiced grave concern about what the cuts to public broadcasting could mean for some local public stations in their state. Some stations will have to close, they warned. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, said the stations are 'not just your news — it is your tsunami alert, it is your landslide alert, it is your volcano alert.' On the foreign aid cuts, the White House argued that they would incentivize other nations to step up and do more to respond to humanitarian crises and that the rescissions best served the American taxpayer. Democrats argued that the Republican administration's animus toward foreign aid programs would hurt America's standing in the world and create a vacuum for China to fill. They also expressed concerns that the cuts would have deadly consequences for many of the world's most impoverished people. 'With these cuts, we will cause death, spread disease and deepen starvation across the planet,' said Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii.
Yahoo
36 minutes ago
- Yahoo
China's premier tells EU leaders 'we can't afford' massive industrial subsidies
Chinese Premier Li Qiang dismissed EU fears over Beijing's allegedly excessive subsidies to its industry, telling the bloc's leaders "we can't afford it" in markedly candid remarks during a tense summit. Speaking during a roundtable with EU chief Ursula von der Leyen on Thursday, Li insisted that "China is by no means doing what some call a subsidies policy or fiscal subsidies". "China is not as rich as Europe, and we can't afford it," he said. "We would not be stupid enough to use the fiscal funds accumulated through the government and the hard work of our people to sell our products to foreign consumers," Li added. Von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa were in Beijing on Thursday for a summit dominated by tensions between the EU and China over trade and Russia's war in Ukraine. Chief among the bloc's concerns was its yawning trade deficit with China, which stood at around $360 billion last year. The EU has also raised fears that Beijing's vast subsidies to its industry could help it undercut European competitors with a flood of cheap exports to the continent. Li, China's number two official, rejected those claims in a roundtable with the EU's leadership. "Some enterprises, especially manufacturing enterprises, feel more deeply that China's manufacturing capabilities are too strong, and Chinese people are too hardworking," the Chinese premier said. "Factories run 24 hours a day," he said. "Some people think this will cause some new problems in the balance of supply and demand in world production," the Chinese premier said, admitting: "We see this problem too." Li also rejected claims the Chinese economy -- plagued by sluggish growth for years now -- was in dire straits. "Of course, there are difficulties and challenges, but it is difficult for us to say that China's economy is in a downturn," he said. "Our GDP growth rate is always above five percent," he insisted. ll-mjw-oho/je/tym
