Billionaire investor and Columbia University graduate Leon Cooperman has pulled funding for his alma matter, expressing disgust over students sharing anti-Israel sentiments on campus.
“These kids at the colleges have s— for brains,” Cooperman told “The Claman Countdown” host Liz Claman on Wednesday. “We have one reliable ally in the Middle East. That’s Israel. We only have one democracy in the Middle East. That’s Israel. And we have one economy tolerant of different people, gays, lesbians, etc. That’s Israel. So they have no idea what these young kids are doing.”
“Now, the real shame is, I’ve given to Columbia probably about $50 million over many years,” he continued. “And I’m going to suspend my giving. I’ll give my giving to other organizations.”
Cooperman also said that he contacted the university to fire the professor who has been in the news over his comments in support of Hamas.
“I told [Columbia] that they should fire this professor that made the comments he made. I mean, war is hell. This war is not good for anybody,” Cooperman said. “But to praise what Hamas did is disgraceful. Disgusting.”
Columbia’s president, Minouche Shafik, previously released a statement for both sides of the conflict. “Unfortunately, some are using this moment to spread antisemitism, Islamophobia, bigotry against Palestinians and Israelis, and various other forms of hate,” she wrote. “Especially at a time of pain and anger, we must avoid language that vilifies, threatens, or stereotypes entire groups of people.”
From Fox News:
Unsure whether the anti-Israel feelings expressed by staff and students on campus will decrease value of a Columbia degree, Cooperman did argue that the value of a master’s level education has certainly decreased since he graduated.
