Joe Biden can cancel federal student loan debt with COVID-19 relief, say Senate Democrats

President Joe Biden previously did not pledge to be able to cancel federal student debt, citing that he does not have the authority to make it happen. However, according to Senate Democrats, there is a way for Biden to push through with student loan debt forgiveness with the use of his sweeping COVID-19 relief plan.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bob Menendez said that there is a provision in Biden’s $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan that can allow him to cancel a significant amount of federal student debt.

Biden’s COVID-19 relief plan that was signed into law last week will make student loan debt forgiveness tax-free until 2025, dismissing concerns of a surprise tax bill that would be targeting those whose debts have been forgiven.

Schumer, Warren, and Menendez, who authored the provision, asserted that this would clear a roadblock for Biden to be able to cancel a student loan debt through executive action.

“Student loan debt is crushing millions of Americans,” said Warren. “President Biden has an opportunity to fix that with a stroke of a pen. This bill helps pave the way to cancel $50,000 in student loan debt.”

The lawmakers say that eliminating most of the $1.7 trillion in student loan debts would stimulate the economy while also helping Black and Latino borrowers, who have been disproportionately affected by the debt crisis.

Warren and Schumer asserted that Biden has the executive authority to forgive due to a precedent set by his predecessors Barack Obama and Donald Trump. Biden has previously said he wants Congress to be able to forgive up to $10,000 in loans through passing legislation, the Republicans would make it a challenge to do so.

In other related news, in his interview with ABC News’s George Stephanopoulos, Biden said Tuesday that he is in favor of reforming the Senate filibuster, reverting the rule back to a talking filibuster. This means that Senators that would express opposition to a bill would be required to talk on the floor to delay the process.

This is the first time Biden has explicitly endorsed filibuster reform in contrast to previous comments made by White House officials suggesting that Biden is not in favor of bringing back a talking filibuster.