Tim Scott to College Presidents: Federal Funding Is a Privilege, Not a Right

Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that college presidents need to know that federal funding is a privilege, not a right.

Host Kristen Welker said, “I want to start with the protests we have seen on college campuses across the country. We know that some universities have called in the police for reinforcement. Do you think that’s the right move? For those who are protesting peacefully, do you respect their right to peaceful protest?”

Scott said, “We certainly respect the right to peaceful protests. What we are seeing on college campuses is too often not peaceful protest. There’s a reason why there’s been more than 2,000 arrests and detainments on college campuses. It’s because people are being hit, they are vandalizing and they are breaking into buildings. What we have to understand is the anti-semitism we see today is akin to the 1960s.”

He added, “The American people are saying it loud and clear, they support eliminating anti-semitism from college campuses. They are being very clear. there’s no space for hate in America. What’s not clear is why it took so long for President Biden to come to the microphone and condemn anti-semitism. The reason, in part, is because his base refuses to let him do so. He is pandering to politics as opposed to standing up for fairness and standing against anti-semitism. I would say this to every college president and university in America, your federal funding is a privilege, it is not a right. A right is for every Jewish kid on campus to walk to class safely. What is a right is for every Jewish kid to study in a library peacefully. We need to make sure that every student feels that kind of security on every campus in America.”

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