OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
A Trump-appointed federal judge in Texas struck down President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan late on Thursday and issued a blistering opinion.
“Biden’s plan, which aims to cancel up to $20,000 in student loan debt for Pell Grant recipients in college and up to $10,000 for others who borrowed using federal student loans,” Fox Business noted.
United States District Judge Pittman sounded off in his opinion, writing: “In this country, we are not ruled by an all-powerful executive with a pen and a phone. Instead, we are ruled by a Constitution that provides for three distinct and independent branches of government…The Court is not blind to the current political division in our country. But it is fundamental to the survival of our Republic that the separation of powers as outlined in our Constitution be preserved. And having interpreted the HEROES Act, the Court holds that it does not provide ‘clear congressional authorization’ for the Program proposed by the Secretary.”
“Whether the Program constitutes good public policy is not the role of this Court to determine. Still, no one can plausibly deny that it is either one of the largest delegations of legislative power to the executive branch, or one of the largest exercises of legislative power without congressional authority in the history of the
United States,” Pittman wrote.
Elaine Parker, President of Job Creators Network Foundation, which brought the lawsuit, praised the ruling.
“The court has correctly ruled in favor of our motion and deemed the Biden student loan program illegal. The judge criticized the Biden Administration program, calling it ‘one of the largest exercises of legislative power without congressional authority in the history of the United States.’ This ruling protects the rule of law which requires all Americans to have their voices heard by their federal government,” Parker said.
“This attempted illegal student loan bailout would have done nothing to address the root cause of unaffordable tuition: greedy and bloated colleges that raise tuition far more than inflation year after year while sitting on $700 billion in endowments. We hope that the court’s decision today will lay the groundwork for real solutions to the student loan crisis,” Parker added.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre took to Twitter after the ruling and revealed the U.S. Department of Justice filed an appeal.
“We strongly disagree with the District Court’s ruling on our student debt relief program and the Department of Justice has filed an appeal. @POTUS and this Administration are determined to help working and middle-class Americans get back on their feet, while our opponents – backed by extreme Republican special interests – sued to block millions of Americans from getting much-needed relief,” Jean-Pierre said in two tweets.
.@POTUS and this Administration are determined to help working and middle-class Americans get back on their feet, while our opponents – backed by extreme Republican special interests – sued to block millions of Americans from getting much-needed relief.
— Karine Jean-Pierre (@PressSec) November 11, 2022
“For the 26 million borrowers who’ve given @usedgov the necessary information to be considered for debt relief – 16 million of whom have already been approved for relief – the Department will hold onto their info, so it can quickly process their relief once we prevail in court. We will never stop fighting for hardworking Americans most in need – no matter how many roadblocks our opponents and special interests try to put in our way,” she added in two additional tweets.
We will never stop fighting for hardworking Americans most in need – no matter how many roadblocks our opponents and special interests try to put in our way.
— Karine Jean-Pierre (@PressSec) November 11, 2022
Last week, Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett turned down another challenge to Biden’s student loan handout.
The justice’s short decision last Friday came amid several lawsuits challenging the loan forgiveness plan as unconstitutional.
“Experts believe that one challenge – brought by six states – will likely eventually make it to the high court because it has the fewest procedural hurdles. That case is currently before the 8th US Circuit Court of Appeals, which has issued an administrative stay of the program while it considers the states’ request for a preliminary injunction,” the outlet reported.
For the moment, however, Americans can still apply for the loan forgiveness program, the outlet added.
Coney Barrett blocked a similar request last month.
“Conservative Justice Amy Coney Barrett rejected the motion from a Wisconsin group without offering an explanation. The Brown County Taxpayers Association filed the motion Wednesday, asking the court to immediately pause the loan relief program while it moves forward with litigation against the Biden Administration,” Forbes reported.
“A federal district court tossed a lawsuit from the group aiming to stop the program, which they have since appealed to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. The motion to the Supreme Court argued the program should be halted immediately because Biden overstepped his authority by authorizing loan forgiveness, which they claimed will lead to a gargantuan increase in the national debt,” the outlet added.
