Judge Halts Trump's College Data Grab

0:00It's April 4, Dallas News Today starts now, AI powered and ready. A federal judge in Boston just slammed the brakes on the Trump administration's push to gather data proving colleges aren't factoring race into. Admissions, U.S. District Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV issued a preliminary injunction Friday following a lawsuit from 17 Democratic state attorneys. General, this blocks the data collection only at public universities in those states. Trump kicked this off back in August, right after the Supreme Court in 2023, ban traditional affirmative action, but allowed students to discuss race in essays. The order demands detailed breakdowns by race and sex for applicants, admits and enrollees, going back seven years, and it was due by March 18. The judge called the rollout rushed in chaotic, saying the 120-day deadline botched any real input from schools. It's fired back that invades student privacy, sparks needless probes, and gives you no time to comply.

1:01Their lawyer, straight up, said it's a hasty hunt for dirt. Meanwhile, the Education Department insists taxpayers need this transparency on federal funds. It mirrors deals with Brown and Columbia, where they hand it over race, grades, and test scores for audits and public release. Fail to deliver, and Secretary Linda McMahon can yank student aid under federal law. Separately, the admins suing Harvard for dodging similar requests, with a fresh 20-day deadline or face justice department heed. Harvard claims it's already complying post-Supreme Court. This legal tug of war shows no signs of slowing, as both sides dig in on what's fair play in college gates.