I suspect most negative reactions would be some combo of:

- it's off topic to talk about racial discrimination in hiring and admissions, when OP is about how a group is treated on campus

- Terence Tao's research funding shouldn't be affected by politics, and it's irrelevant that he happens to work for UCLA

- dislike the current administration's positions and methods in general

- don't like this particular action, so any attempt to see good in it is bad