"... the government can’t pick and choose which information to share based on ideology," a senior staff attorney with the ACLU said.

Harvard University's links to China, long an asset to the school, have become a liability as the Trump administration levels accusations that its campus is plagued by Beijing-backed influence operations.

A judge has ordered a temporary restraining order blocking the Administration from revoking Harvard's certification.

"It would be devastating," a former president of Harvard — and frequent critic of the university — said of the government's attempt to prevent Harvard from enrolling foreign students.

The administration has frozen funding and targeted international students as it presses the university for a stronger response to alleged antisemitism.

Harvard and the federal government are locked in a battle that boils down to turning over records on international students. But Harvard says it is also about the First Amendment.

The larger legal battle between Harvard and the Trump administration could raise questions of retaliation versus executive authority.

For students around the world, an acceptance letter to Harvard University has represented the pinnacle of achievement.

College officials fear that President Trump may use international enrollment as leverage to demand changes on campuses elsewhere.