Trump's hyped free speech order will ask colleges to do what they already have to

President Donald Trump on Thursday afternoon is set to sign his much-hyped executive order on campus free speech — which he has vowed will require colleges to "support free speech" or face "very costly" penalties.

But the order essentially just reinforces what schools are already supposed to be doing by formally requiring colleges to agree to promote free inquiry in order to get billions of dollars in federal research funding.

"While many schools — or all schools — are frankly supposed to follow this currently, it will ensure that grant dollars are associated through the grant-making process, and schools will have to certify that they’re following this condition," a senior administration official said.

The order will direct 12 federal agencies that fund university research to add language to existing agreements that colleges have to sign to get the money.

Public universities will have to vow to uphold the First Amendment — something they already must do — and private universities will have to promise to "comply with their stated institutional policies regarding free inquiry," essentially setting their own rules, a senior administration official said.

"Schools are already supposed to be following these rules and essentially each agency already conditions grants, and schools are certifying they’re following these conditions, and it will just add free speech as one of those conditions," the official said.

It will be up to the agencies to enforce the agreements, as they already do.