Will Biden Cancel Student Loan Debt?

President Joe Biden has asked Congress to draft a proposal on forgiving student loan debt. Meanwhile, he questions his authority to do so using executive action. “I’m going to get in trouble for saying this,” said Biden. “The president may have the executive power to forgive up to $50,000 in student debt. Well, I think that’s pretty questionable. I’m unsure of that. I’d be unlikely to do that.” 

What Biden has done is extend the pause of student loan payments that went into effect last March and was renewed by President Trump last year. As it stands, students are safe from payments and interest through September 2021.

Biden says he supports the idea of forgiving $10,000 of student loan debt per person. However, some lawmakers are demanding an even more generous offer. 

Senators Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) have joined with Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) and other lawmakers in demanding that Biden use executive action to eliminate $50,000 in student debt per person. 

Lawmakers insist Biden can use executive action to forgive student debt on his own.

However, some experts say the action would be illegal. 

“This debt holds people back from buying cars, from going on vacation, from starting families, from getting the job they want to get,” argues Schumer. “It’s a huge anchor on our entire economy. And there’s very little that the president could do with a flick of a pen that would boost our economy more than canceling $50,000 of student debt.” 

Last week, Schumer said he believes the administration will take action to forgive student debt if there is significant pressure from the public. He added that Biden’s top advisers have been “extremely open to listening to us.” Warren has already urged incoming Education Secretary Miguel Cardona to “reform [the Federal Student Aid] so that it works for student borrowers instead of big corporations.” 

On the flip side, GOP lawmakers warn that cancelling student debt will have little-to-no effect on the economy. They argue that it could also raise serious questions of fairness for students who have already paid back their loans or avoided going to college due to cost. In addition, any move to forgive student loan debt would likely exclude those who took out private loans.

In total, roughly 43 million Americans owe the Treasury Department $1.6 trillion in student loans.

If the Biden administration forgives all or part of this debt, the burden will fall on taxpayers. 

Author’s Note: Universities are unaffordable because the government subsidizes them through student loans. These subsidies allow universities to build new programs that do nothing except push the liberal agenda (rather than prepare students for real jobs). To date, universities have had no motivation to decrease costs. 

The price of education will continue to increase and the quality of education will continue to drop until universities have a reason to decrease prices. Canceling student loan debt without fixing the underlying problems is the height of stupidity.