Joe Biden’s executive order on student loans directly punishes our middle class, incentivizes fiscal irresponsibility, and worst of all, backstabs hard working Americans who did the right thing and tightened their belts to pay off their loans. Biden’s order does not erase any debt, it transfers the burden on to American taxpayers. In Biden’sAmerica, blue collar workers who never attended college will be paying the bills for wealthy elites making over six-figures annually. In Biden’s America, we are all forced to pay for professors and social workers to get their PHD in gender studies. Joe Biden's reckless decision to approve more government spending was aimed at buying votes with handouts. Unfortunately for Americans, it will only further fuel the inflation that is crippling our economy amid a recession.
This massive bailout will drive up the costs of tuition and sets a dangerous precedent that future loans may be forgiven as well. This shouldn’t come as a surprise. We already knew that Democrats have zero financial restraint. Whether it's sending billions upon billions overseas with no oversight or passing a spending bill of over $700 Billion to“reduce” inflation, they are shameless. Now, they are openly telling Americans that the responsible will be punished and the careless will be rewarded. Biden’s executive order is a direct transfer of wealth from middle-class Americans to white-collar elites.Welcome to Joe Biden’s America.
From a legal perspective, Joe Biden has no authority to enact this executive order. Don’t take my words for it. In July 2021, Nancy Pelosi stated, “People think that the President of the United States has the power for debt forgiveness. He does not. He can postpone, he can delay, but he does not have that power. This has to be an act of Congress.”Further, Joe Biden himself admitted as much in February, “I don’t think I have the authority to do it by signing the pen.” The Penn Wharton Budget Model finds that between 69 and 73% of forgiven debt goes to households in the top 60% of income distribution. In addition, they estimate Biden’s executive order will cost taxpayers around $329 billion over the next ten years. The National Taxpayers Union Foundation reports that Biden’s plan could cost the average taxpayer $2,000 each. With the UnitedStates already dealing with record high levels of inflation, this executive order will only compound the crisis.
Biden and the Democrats’ desperate play for political favor will backfire and should receive legitimate legal challenges and opposition. The government’s subsidization of college serves as a catalyst for tuition increases as well. Brian Riedl, a senior fellow in budget, tax, and economic policy at the Manhattan Institute reports that, “60% of all student aid increases have been captured with tuition hikes, and this will be treated like an increase in student aid moving forward.” Biden’s plan will incentivize young adults to take on massive loans with the expectation that they will be paid off. Americans should be infuriated that their wise actions are disregarded by desperate politicians aiming to gain votes in the upcoming midterm elections.
Biden’s brazen attempt to buy votes only erodes trust in his ability to lead. He decided to discourage personable responsibility and punish the American middle class. AllDemocrats must state on the record their support for Biden’s executive order and explain their position to their constituents. They have turned their backs on hard working Americans in the pursuit of raw political power once again. This is an unacceptable betrayal by a president and a party that have completely lost touch with reality and with the pulse of the American people. The Republican Party is the party of the working class and common sense. The Democrats might want to live in a world without consequences, but they cannot escape the consequences they will face at the ballot box. November is coming.
Eli Crane is a former U.S. Navy SEAL, founder of the Shark Tank award-winning companyBottle Breacher, and America First candidate for U.S. Congress in Arizona’s 2nd Congressional District.