More recently during his presidency, Biden has been called upon by senators Chuck Schumer and Elizabeth Warren to eliminate $50,000 in federal student loan debt per borrower. At a cost of roughly $1 trillion, that might be the most expensive policy ever enacted by executive order. Biden himself favors a smaller loan cancellation of $10,000 per borrower, but this would still cost upwards of $370 billion (according to WSJ). 

As a general political rule, executive orders are not a great way to set policy for a country. A move by Biden to unilaterally cancel student debt would most likely incite many lawsuits and completely eradicate any chance of bipartisan cooperation for education reform in Congress. Furthermore, it might all come to a screeching halt when a judge rules that the president lacks the statutory authority to forgive loans for the masses. Leaving all legal questions aside, there are many other reasons why student loan forgiveness should be opposed.

Attending a college or university is not mandatory. Nobody is forced to go to college. Nobody is forced to take out loans. The value of a four-year college education is decreasing every year, according to Forbes. Maybe taking out a massive loan that can’t be repaid with a degree in sociology isn’t the most strategic move. All jokes aside, it all boils down to personal responsibility. A debt repayment program for college students teaches them nothing about responsibility and only makes them more dependent on the government.

Out of 250 million adult Americans, only 45 million have student loan debt. Is it fair to make the 250 million people who aren’t affected by student loan debt pay for it? Or is it more fair to make those other people pay for it since they don’t have the same debt hanging over their heads? This is where the opinions split and everyone has different thoughts on this controversial topic. Comment below what you think about student loan forgiveness and if it could be implemented in the U.S.