Progressives in the Democratic Party are a reckless bunch, but their latest scheme to steal more from you and give it to their voters is truly idiotic. There’s no nicer way to put it.
Earlier this week, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer paraded out the most liberal group in his party and demanded the President forgive up to the $50,000 in student loan debt. Apparently, Schumer and Sen. Liz Warren have studied the issue and believe the President has the authority to single-handedly cancel student loan debt. Who knew Warren and Schumer favored monarchy over democracy?
They want King Biden to forgive hundreds of billions of dollars in tax-payer funded loans with the “stroke of a pen.”
Setting aside for a minute how unfair this would be to millions of American families who did the responsible thing by saving and sacrificing so they could send their kids to college. And ignoring the fact that borrowers who needed loans and already repaid them once again get punished for being responsible. Think of the incentives a student loan debt jubilee will create.
If I’m a parent why save for my kids’ college, if the government is going to eventually cave in again and foot the bill? I’m sure most families could find sexier things to do with their money than save for their kids’ college. If I’m a student with no parental support, why not borrow as much as they’ll lend? I can always lobby Liz Warren to push a Democrat President to forgive my student loans. If I’m a college, why not jack up the price and cut aid? Uncle Sam is eventually going to pick up the tab anyway, isn’t he?
Hell, if I don’t have kids, I might as well spend and borrow much more than I can afford. Under a Biden/Warren economic doctrine, as long as I can’t afford it, I deserve it.
We know it has become fashionable to reward irresponsible borrowing and spending. In the financial crisis, the government bailed out homeowners who willingly took on too much mortgage debt. They also bailed out businesses that took on too much risk. In March of last year, the Fed and Treasury decided it would bail out overleveraged companies, hedge funds speculating in the Treasury market, and overleveraged mortgage REITs, by invoking their emergency power authority and purchasing corporate debt that is a violation of the Fed’s charter. But at least those bailouts had bipartisan support from Congress.
If Joe Biden can cancel hundreds of billions of dollars of debt with the stroke of a pen, what’s the point of even having a House and Senate?
The WSJ reports:
The Biden administration is considering using executive action to forgive Americans’ federal student debt, the White House’s chief spokeswoman said Thursday, responding to pressure from Democratic lawmakers and progressive groups.
President Biden has previously questioned his ability to use executive action to forgive some or all of Americans’ federal student debt. He has instead urged Congress to pass legislation to write off $10,000 in student debt for every borrower.
The White House shifted Thursday, saying it was open to forgiving debt without a move by Congress. “Our team is reviewing whether there are any steps he can take through executive action and he would welcome the opportunity to sign a bill sent to him by Congress,” Jen Psaki, the White House press secretary, wrote on Twitter.
Ms. Psaki’s comments followed a news conference earlier Thursday held by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.), Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.) and Reps. Ilhan Omar (D., Minn.), Ayanna Pressley (D., Mass.), Alma Adams (D., N.C.) and Mondaire Jones (D., N.Y.)
Mr. Schumer urged Mr. Biden to use his executive powers to eliminate $50,000 in student loan debt for all borrowers.
“This debt holds people back from buying cars, from going on vacation, from starting families, from getting the job they want to get. It’s a huge anchor on our entire economy. And there’s very little that the president could do with a flick of a pen that would boost our economy more than canceling $50,000 of student debt,” Mr. Schumer said.
