The comments are the latest volley in an escalating battle between the White House and one of the nation's most prestigious colleges.

President Trump issued a new threat to Harvard University on Tuesday after the federal government froze $2.2 billion in grant funding for the institution, suggesting that the Ivy League school "should lose its tax-exempt status and be taxed as a political entity."

Harvard University is one of many colleges under investigation by the Trump administration for their handling of alleged antisemitism on campuses.