Looming Biden Loan Plan Gets Pushback from Advocates
On the campaign trail, Joe Biden was seen as a bit of an old codger within the Democratic Party. He was a nearly life-long politician and represented precisely the opposite approach to the Trump years that the Party thought would resonate among midwestern moderates they were trying to snatch away from No. 45 in 2020.
But there was a problem: Biden also needed to appeal to the Democrats’ most fervent voters: The radical left. This led Biden to make several policy suggestions that catered directly to these more radical elements of the Party. One was a potential canceling of some or all of the nation’s student loan debt.
Now as an order on just such a move appears imminent, advocates are complaining that the President might not go far enough.
Some Democrats and activists have insisted that President Joe Biden needs to cancel at least $50,000 per borrower to make a meaningful impact on the country’s $1.7 trillion outstanding student loan balance. More than 40 million Americans are in debt for their education, and about 25% of those borrowers are in delinquency or default.
“It’s an absolute insult,” said Thomas Gokey, co-founder of the Debt Collective, a national union of debtors. “This is less than what he promised on the campaign.”
While running for president, Biden had vowed immediate debt cancellation of $10,000 per borrower, and he hadn’t said anything about limiting the relief to people who earn under a certain amount. Now the administration is looking at imposing income caps of $150,000 for individuals and $300,000 for married couples for the relief, according to The Washington Post.
No set timeline for the maneuver has been set, but there are certainly going to be some heated discussions on Capitol Hill in the coming days now that the information is available.
