John,
President Joe Biden has asked both the Department of Justice and the Secretary of Education to outline the legal authority that would allow him to cancel student loan debt up to $50,000 per person.
Here’s the thing, we already know the answer: Yes! He can.
Congress has already granted authority to broadly cancel student debt under section 432(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, which gives the Secretary of Education the right to "... compromise, waive, or release any right, title, claim, lien, or demand, however acquired, including any equity or any right of redemption."
Let's be clear, this is the same authority the Department of Education used to enact small and temporary relief for federal student loan borrowers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The bottom line is the Biden administration has the authority. The question is: will they use it?
The answer is up to us.
The administration is trying to decide right now how big they should go to help the millions of Americans that are struggling with crippling student debt, that's why they need to hear from us immediately.
Sign our petition to President Biden and Kamala Harris to go big and cancel all student debt once and for all.
Canceling student loan debt will have numerous benefits, from helping to close the racial wealth gap to boosting the economy by giving trillions of dollars back to millions of hard-working Americans.
When progressives like Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Ro Khanna, and Mark Pocan and even moderates like Chuck Schumer and James Clyburn are all pushing for student loan debt cancellation, you know that we have real momentum.
But momentum alone is not enough. President Biden needs to know millions of Americans are demanding action. That if he goes big, we'll have his back.
Forgiving student debt and investing in our educational system must be top priorities for our future. Join DFA in calling on Joe Biden and Kamala Harris to use their executive authority to support millions of Americans by canceling student debt.
The President has the authority to cancel student debt with the stroke of the pen.
Let’s make it happen,
— Tre
Tre Graves
Campaign Organizer
Democracy for America
