By Zach Schonfeld | The Hill
A federal judge on Tuesday blocked restrictions imposed by the Trump administration that prevent faculty at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point (USMA) from speaking to external groups without permission.
U.S. District Judge Cathy Seibel agreed with a longtime law professor that the policy likely violates civilian professors’ free speech rights under the First Amendment.
“And even affording Defendants due deference in the realm of military affairs, their stated justifications for the Academic Engagement Policy do not warrant such a broad and standardless intrusion on Plaintiff’s speech and that of other USMA civilian faculty members,” Seibel wrote in her 85-page opinion.
Seibel is an appointee of former President George W. Bush who serves on the federal bench in New York.
“In accordance with standing procedures, the Academy does not comment on current litigation. West Point will continue to work with Department of Justice attorneys from the Southern District of New York on next steps,” the school said in a statement.
West Point implemented the new policy last year shortly after President Trump retook the White House.
It requires faculty to get approval from department heads to engage with external audiences “that are within faculty members’ disciplinary areas of expertise while on duty or when using any USMA affiliation or branding.” That requirement covers conferences, press interviews, podcasts and more.
The school implemented it after President Trump signed an executive order that barred the nation’s military academies from promoting “un-American” and “discriminatory” theories, as part of his administration’s broader crackdown on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
Longtime West Point law professor Tim Bakken filed the class-action lawsuit against the school last September to challenge the policy and an unofficial directive for faculty to not share their personal opinions in the classroom.
Seibel’s ruling rejects the Justice Department’s arguments that Bakken’s suit must go before a specialty board that hears federal employee disputes, not a federal district judge, and that intervening would interfere with the military.
“A court need not defer to mere conjecture and speculation, even when matters of military readiness could be implicated,” the judge retorted.
Though her ruling blocks the policy for civilian professors, the ruling does not impact enforcement against faculty on active duty.
The ruling landed just days after West Point held its graduation ceremony, where Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth spoke to the cadets and railed against diversity initiatives under the previous administration.
“The battlefield does not grade on a curve, and you can’t throw your pronouns at the enemy,” Hegseth told the crowd. “Combat is the ultimate test, and our best Americans must ace it.”
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