Biden cancels student debt for millions of Americans
United States President Joe Biden will cancel up to $10,000 in federal student loans for millions of Americans who earn less than $125,000 each year. Biden will also forgive $20,000 of debt for students on Grants, which applies to those in greatest financial need.
“People can finally crawl out under that mountain of debt,” he said.
An estimated 43 million Americans owe a combined total of $1.6tn in federal student debt. Nearly one-fifth owe less than $10,000.
Speaking from the White House on Wednesday, Mr Biden said his plan would give more “breathing room” to working and middle class families.
“The burden is so heavy that even if you graduate you may not have access to the middle class life that the college degree once provided,” he said, recalling the shame his car salesman father felt when he struggled to pay for his children’s education.
About one-third of borrowers have student debt but no degree, Mr Biden said. “The worst of both worlds.”
The announcement follows more than a year of intense internal White House debate and mounting pressure from progressive Democrats. Top Democrats Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York and Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, are among those who had pushed Mr Biden to use his executive power to wipe out borrower debts.
