AFT’s Weingarten on President Biden’s New Path to Student Debt Relief

WASHINGTON—American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten issued the following statement on President Joe Biden’s new plan for student debt relief and support:

“As the Supreme Court ignores long-held precedent and guts LGBTQIA+ rights, affirmative action and student debt relief, President Biden does the opposite—he acts to expand rights and freedoms to fulfill, rather than diminish, this country’s founding principles.

“Today, in the face of the majority’s callousness, the president responded rapidly to get borrowers the supports they need and deserve, working with Secretary Miguel Cardona to tap his authority under the Higher Education Act to initiate a rulemaking process to provide an alternative path to debt relief. The administration will also institute a new repayment structure and ease the path to repayment via a 12-month on-ramp.

“And the AFT will do our part, too, by increasing access to our debt relief program, Summer, holding additional student debt clinics and national webinars, and spreading the word about the administration’s new initiatives among our 1.7 million members.

“The Supreme Court may be determined to set us back decades and deny the basic rights and freedoms enshrined in the Constitution, but President Biden showed today that he will not cede the promise of America without a fight.”