HAMILTON, Canada 

A senior Trump administration official pushed for an exhaustive investigation into student protesters at Columbia University, which raised concerns among Justice Department lawyers, the New York Times reported Thursday.

According to the report, Emil Bove III, a senior Department of Justice official, asked civil rights prosecutors to collect the names of students from the Columbia University Apartheid Divest group after a protest in February against Israel's actions in Gaza.

Noting that the lawyers in the department said the request for names could violate students' First Amendment rights, the report said Bove also wanted to give the list to immigration agents, which made prosecutors worry the goal was to scare or deport student activists.

Bove then pushed for a search warrant to access the group's social media account, claiming it contained threats. But a judge denied the request twice, saying there was insufficient evidence. Prosecutors said the post did not meet the legal definition of a threat.

The FBI was also told to show up in force near campus protests to intimidate students, but agents did not follow through.
Justice Department lawyers argued that Bove's actions went against legal standards and were meant to help President Donald Trump's push to crack down on campus protests in support of Gaza.

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche denied the claims. He told the New York Times that the story is false and added that the department was acting to fight antisemitism.

While the investigation appears to have stalled, the report said it has deepened tensions within the Justice Department between political appointees and career staff.