US President Joe Biden announced new plans Monday to decrease student loan debt for millions of Americans, in a renewed effort to win over young voters who will be critical in the November election.
The Democrat’s suggestions come after his first, larger ambitions to eliminate hundreds of billions of dollars in debt were rejected by the conservative-dominated US Supreme Court in June.
“The plans, if implemented, would provide debt relief to over 30 million Americans,” the White House stated in a statement before Biden’s speech in Madison, Wisconsin.
According to the plans, 23 million borrowers would have their accrued interest waived, four million would have their student loan cancelled, and over ten million would receive at least $5,000 in debt relief.
“It means breathing room, it means not having your student loan bills compete with basic needs like groceries or health care,” Education Secretary Miguel Cardona told reporters.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre also stated that Biden would “use every tool available” to cancel student debt, “no matter how many times Republican elected officials tried to stand in his way.”
The revised measures were “entirely consistent” with the court judgement last year, which the White House had analysed “carefully,” according to a senior administration official.
Younger voters helped Biden defeat Republican then-President Donald Trump in the 2020 election, and he will need their support this year to recover from a polling deficit.
Biden’s student loan programme has been a significant component of this, but it was disrupted when his idea to erase more than $400 billion in debt was rejected.
US President Joe Biden announced new plans Monday to decrease student loan debt for millions of Americans, in a renewed effort to win over young voters who will be critical in the November election.
The Democrat’s suggestions come after his first, larger ambitions to eliminate hundreds of billions of dollars in debt were rejected by the conservative-dominated US Supreme Court in June.
“The plans, if implemented, would provide debt relief to over 30 million Americans,” the White House stated in a statement before Biden’s speech in Madison, Wisconsin.
According to the plans, 23 million borrowers would have their accrued interest waived, four million would have their student loan cancelled, and over ten million would receive at least $5,000 in debt relief.
“It means breathing room, it means not having your student loan bills compete with basic needs like groceries or health care,” Education Secretary Miguel Cardona told reporters.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre also stated that Biden would “use every tool available” to cancel student debt, “no matter how many times Republican elected officials tried to stand in his way.”
The revised measures were “entirely consistent” with the court judgement last year, which the White House had analysed “carefully,” according to a senior administration official.
Younger voters helped Biden defeat Republican then-President Donald Trump in the 2020 election, and he will need their support this year to recover from a polling deficit.
Biden’s student loan programme has been a significant component of this, but it was disrupted when his idea to erase more than $400 billion in debt was rejected.