No, the problem, as I see it, is four fold.
1. It does nothing to address the high cost of college tuition or the predatory lending practices of banks. Over the last three decades, the cost of attending college in this country has almost quadrupled. In some states, a four-year degree can cost as much as a house. Saddling new graduates with that kind of crippling debt is shameful and will continue unabated. If anything, things will only get worse.
2. Since this was basically a one off, four years from now, future college graduates will expect a similar bailout. And when it doesn't come, Democrats are going to, once again, have to deal with a constituency that is disillusioned and feels betrayed. It's bad enough millennials don't feel inspired to vote for Democrats, now the Gen Zs will join them on the sidelines. Brilliant.
3. Forgiving roughly $400 billion in student loan debt with inflation as high at it is this close to a midterm election is tone deaf politically. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has already signaled that future rate hikes are coming and is preparing the country for what will likely be a recession down the road. How on Earth the West Wing didn't factor this in is beyond belief. If Biden wanted to forgive student loan debt, he could've and should've waited until after the election. With all the good polling news that Democrats have gotten over the last few weeks, this was the last thing they needed going into November.
4. Biden's executive order will almost certainly be challenged in court and likely be overturned. That's because, as Nancy Pelosi pointed out last year when this topic first came up, the power of the purse resides exclusively with Congress, not the president. And once it gets thrown out, the "I told you so" crowd will have a field day with Biden.
Comments