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Lots of confusion & outrage about Biden's #StudentDebt comments last night. Putting aside my opinion & the debate on the merits of debt cancellation, I want to provide some explanation around Biden's #HigherEd plan (including to #CancelStudentDebt) & his rationale.
First, Biden was trying to make 2 different arguments on the $10k v. $50k & they got a little muddied last night. Some folks thought he was saying $10k via executive action was legal but $50k was not. That's not what he was saying.
Biden doesn't believe he has the executive authority to cancel debt broadly (either $10k or $50k) as Warren & others have proposed. You may not agree with that & that's okay. But in his defense, there isn't consensus on this issue and the courts especially have not weighed in.
Biden supports $10k in debt cancellation, but through Congress. That was always his position. When he backed that plan year, it was part of legislation introduced & pushed by House Dems and Senator Warren to provide Covid relief/stimulus.
But Biden also doesn't support the broad proposal for $50k on the policy itself. He made the point last night about graduate debt and private colleges. Lots of folks have complained about that, but it flows logically with his #HigherEd plan.
Biden proposed making community colleges tuition-free for everyone & public 4-yr colleges (& HBCUs) tuition-free for families making <$125k. (Remember: median household income in the US is <$70k.)
Also, no one has proposed making graduate school or private colleges tuition-free.
Also, no one has proposed making graduate school or private colleges tuition-free.
Now, some folks would say that if public college was tuition-free they might not have attended private school. I think that's a fair point—unless you went to an ivy or other elite school, then I don't buy that—I went to a small private & probably would've made a different choice.
But Biden didn't just propose the $10k. Following the spirit of his free college plan, he proposed canceling the tuition-related debt for public undergraduate education. (I will say that I don't know how you could ever implement this.) https://www.forbes.com/sites/wesleywhistle/2020/04/09/biden-announces-new-student-debt-cancellation-plan/
And, this won't matter to many, but I'll add that Biden also proposed upping the generosity of income-driven repayment (I don't necessarily agree with the way he did it) and improving PSLF.
Biden's answer wasn't clear on some of the details last night, so I get some of the confusion (except those who know better). But this is the position he's had since before the election. You may not agree, but he actually moved left on this issue when he became the nominee. <END>
