President Biden announced he is unilaterally — meaning without the joinder of Congress which is supposed to control the Federal purse — forgiving college loan debt of $10-20,000 (Pell Grants) for individuals making up to $125,000 or families making up to $250,000.

The Committee for a Responsible Budget scores this Executive Order as costing somewhere between $440B to $600B.

There has been both a huge outcry against and for this policy. Here are some thoughts.

The Facts

1. Total college loan debt is more than $1,750,000,000,000 – that is $1.75T. This is bigger than credit card debt in the US. Hello, America!

Credit card debt is about $850,000,000,000 — $850B — versus college loan debt of $1.75T.

Total auto loan debt in US is $1.45T. Continue reading →