Biden tells 813,000 more Americans he has WIPED their student loan debt: President has now forgiven $127 billion for 3.5 million borrowers – even though the Supreme Court sank his first bid
Joe Biden told 813,000 more Americans on Tuesday that he has canceled their student loan debt, meaning the president has forgiven a total of $127 billion to 3.5 million borrowers.
The former students will soon receive an email from Biden informing them that their debt has been forgiven — despite the fact that his plan to cancel $400 billion in debt was rejected by the Supreme Court in June.
The email – which made it clear that the help came from Biden – read: “Congratulations – your student loan has been forgiven because of actions my administration has taken to ensure you get the relief you deserve and deserve.”
Biden’s idiosyncratic push for the aid program coincides with the looming 2024 election and a desire to get young voters on board.
A White House spokesman said Tuesday: “The president is committed to fighting for hardworking American families, making sure we give them some breathing room and empower them to support themselves and their families.”
Joe Biden told another 813,000 Americans on Tuesday that he has canceled their student loan debt, meaning the president has forgiven a total of $127 billion to 3.5 million borrowers
Students protest the Supreme Court’s ruling against President Joe Biden’s student debt relief program
In early October, Biden canceled another $9 billion in student debt, providing relief to 125,000 borrowers.
The move came as borrowers prepared to resume payments after a three-year hiatus that began during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Americans saddled with unsustainable debt in exchange for a college degree has become the norm,” Biden said in a speech at the White House.
He argued that canceling student debt is good for the economy because borrowers will spend their payment money on other things.
“This kind of relief is life-changing for individuals and their families. But it is also good for our economy as a whole. Freeing millions of Americans from the crushing burden of student debt means they can get their lives in order. They can think about buying a house. They can start a business. They can start a family. This is important. This is important for their daily lives,” the president said.
In total, 3.6 million borrowers will have had $127 billion in debt wiped out since Biden took office.
“My administration will continue to use every tool at our disposal to ease the burden of student debt so that more Americans are free to achieve their dreams. It’s good for our economy. It’s good for our country. And it will change their lives,” he said.
Federal student loan payments resumed on October 1.
In June, the Supreme Court canceled Biden’s student loan forgiveness program, which promised up to $20,000 in debt relief for low- and middle-income borrowers. The government has continued to find other ways to provide debt relief.
In early October, Biden canceled another $9 billion in student debt, providing relief to 125,000 borrowers
Meanwhile, the Biden administration got a big slap on the wrist from one of its own agencies earlier this month for failing to implement strong anti-fraud measures in its original plan to hand out $430 billion in student loans.
In the aftermath, Biden said he would pursue new measures to provide student loan relief.
He relies on a patchwork of different programs to eliminate debt, such as government loan forgiveness and the SAVE Plan, which lowers payments by tying them to borrowers’ incomes.
Meanwhile, the Biden administration got a big slap on the wrist earlier this month from one of its own agencies for failing to implement strong anti-fraud measures in its original plan to hand out $430 billion in student loans.
In a blistering report, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) exposed flaws in Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan — which has since been rejected by the Supreme Court — and said it opened the door to fraud.
“We found that the education system was quickly approving borrowers for debt relief without implementing key practices to prevent fraud. For example, it did not verify the self-reported income of certain borrowers before approving them for relief.”
Additionally, it said the department has approved more than 12 million loan applicants “without evaluating the accuracy and results of the application process.”
And 2 million students would be automatically approved based on their self-reported income, without the Department of Education deploying “any tools to verify these borrowers’ incomes or ensure they qualified for relief.”
Members of Congress quickly responded to the report, criticizing Biden and Education Secretary Miguel Cardona.