Democrats’ Plan Seeks To Forgive $50,000 In Student Debt For 36 Million Borrowers

On Thursday,  Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-New York) and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) called for the White House to forgive $50,000 in student debt for 80% of all borrowers, a whopping 36 million people.

“During a time of historic and overlapping crises, which are disproportionately impacting communities of color, we must do everything in our power to deliver real relief to the American people, lift up our struggling economy and close the racial wealth gap,” Schumer stated. “Democrats are committed to big, bold action, and this resolution to cancel up to $50,000 in federal student loan debt is one of the strongest steps the president can take to achieve these goals.”

This resolution was first introduced in Congress last year by Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Massachusetts) and Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minnesota). Newly elected Rep. Mondaire Jones (D-New York) joined as a co-sponsor this year. Biden remains dubious about agreeing to cancel student debt through executive action. He did not include debt forgiveness in his COVID-19 stimulus package – nonetheless, he is being pressured by progressive Democrats.

During Biden’s presidential campaign, he promised student loan forgiveness of $10,000 per person. If he decides to go forward with the $50,000 bill, the student loan debt balance in the U.S. would decrease drastically, going from $1.7 trillion to $700 billion.

Article by Elizabeth Letsou