Student loan borrowers gather near The White House to tell President Biden to cancel student debt – all of it with no means-testing on May 12, 2020 in Washington, DC.
Paul Morigi | Getty Images
Advocates expressed anger and disappointment on Friday in response to news that the Biden administration is leaning toward forgiving $10,000 in student loans per borrower.
Some Democrats and activists have insisted that President Joe Biden needs to cancel at least $50,000 per borrower to make a meaningful impact on the country’s $1.7 trillion outstanding student loan balance. More than 40 million Americans are in debt for their education, and about 25% of those borrowers are in delinquency or default.
“It’s an absolute insult,” said Thomas Gokey, co-founder of the Debt Collective, a national union of debtors. “This is less than what he promised on the campaign.”
While running for president, Biden had vowed immediate debt cancellation of $10,000 per borrower, and he hadn’t said anything about limiting the relief to people who earn under a certain amount. Now the administration is looking at imposing income caps of $150,000 for individuals and $300,000 for married couples for the relief, according to The Washington Post.
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Adding red tape to the cancellation program will result in many people missing out on the policy, Gokey said,…
