Student debt cancellation advocate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) ridiculed Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) on Thursday after the Republican said that government benefits like loan forgiveness are tantamount to a “bribe.”
After news had been circulated President Joe BidenWednesday: Congress will be looking at options to cancel student loans without Congress Romney wrote, “Desperate polls call for desperate measures: Dems consider forgiving trillions in student loans. Other bribes include granting auto loans forgiveness. Forgive credit card debt Forgive mortgages? Put a wealth tax for the super-rich to cover it all. What could possibly go wrong?”
Sanders responded by pleading for cancelling All student debt, pointed out that Romney’s view on student loans isn’t consistent with his views on government funding for corporations and the wealthy.
“Mr. Romney supports ‘bribes’ in the form of tax cuts for the wealthy and billions in welfare for corporations, but is shocked by the idea that working Americans might get help paying off student debt,” Sanders tweeted. “I know he thinks corporations are people, but does he know people are people?”
Political commentators also criticized Romney’s post, pointing outRomney was supported the huge bailoutsThese were made available to banks and corporations in 2008 with little accountability. Romney has personally benefitedFrom such corporate bailoutsHe made millions of dollars, for example, from the profits of the bailout of Bain Capital as Bain skimmed money from workers’ pension funds.
Romney’s argument that wealthy Americans shouldn’t have to face a tax to cover debtors’ student loans is also disingenuous. Conservatives often use their concerns about the federal deficit and government spending to justify their opposition to cancelling student debt. Economicians have discoveredThe vast benefits of student debt cancellation outweigh any negative impact on inflation and the deficit.
The Utah Republican’s tweet also seemed to suggest that student debt cancellation is simply a last-ditch effort by Democrats to gain voters’ favor before the election, despite the fact that action on student debt is popular and would materially benefit millions of Americans’ lives — and as though Republicans aren’t actively trying to restrict voting and undermine electionsAll across the country
While conservatives oppose student loans forgiveness outright, Biden has resisted the issue and seemed to be less eager to act.
Despite reports that President Obama is considering cancelling A substantial amount of debt, Biden saidIt is not possible to cancel $50,000 of debt. “I am considering dealing with some debt reduction. I am not considering $50,000 debt reduction,” he said, adding that he will be announcing a plan within the “next couple of weeks.”
Some advocates are hopefulBiden will cancel more debtors than $50,000, but that seems unlikely.
It’s unclear what amount of student loans Biden is considering forgiving, and whether forgiveness will be universal across all debtors. His administration Have you flip-flopped?On the issue, he promised that he would cancel loans up to $10,000 per borrower.
Debt activists argue that $10,000 is not enough to assist borrowers in greatest need. point out that that amountCould easily return in interest over time.
Biden has heeded progressives’ advice on student debt before. When he extended payment, pause This month, earlier, he also wiped out the default status of over 7 million borrowers, in order to give them a “fresh start” when payments restart. Both Sanders and Senator Elizabeth Warren (D.Massachusetts), who are both proponents of student debt cancellation, urged him to cancel his administration. Move borrowers out from defaultIn a letter from last year.
