A staff member for a Democratic congresswoman bragged online on Wednesday that President Biden’s student loan relief measure — an executive order that her boss has openly opposed in the past — applied to her.
“They received a call informing them their student loans have been forgiven,” said Ben Kamens, a spokesman for Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio). Post to X.
“This is why the election matters! Thank you @JoeBiden,” Kamens added, sharing a photo of a document that read: “Congratulations! The Biden-Harris Administration has fully forgiven your federal student loans.”
Kamens was able to forgive $8,250 in student loan repayments dating back to 2010 through the Department of Education’s Saving for a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan, which is expected to extract $475 billion from American taxpayers over the next decade.
Kaptur’s spokesperson made about $80,000 in 2023, according to LegiStorm’s Congressional staff salary database.
In Ohio’s 9th Congressional District, which Rep. Kpatur represents, the median household income is $62,077. According to U.S. Census Bureau data:.
Kamens’ post had been viewed more than 18.7 million times as of Thursday morning, with many internet users slamming Kaptur’s aide and pointing out that the address listed on the form was a $500,000 home in Pennsylvania.
“American workers will no doubt be happy to jump in, knowing that if they take out a loan to purchase the service, they won’t be willing to pay off the $8,250 principal over 14 years – the equivalent of $589 a year,” said a senior editor at National Review. Charles C.W. Cook made a scathing comment: About X.
“You’re welcome. Free ride.” Fox News late-night host Greg Gutfeld added:.
“Yes, I like ‘free’ stuff that other people also pay for.” Ilya Shapiro said sarcastically. of the Manhattan Institute.
“Why Elections Matter is a scathing indictment of the current state of politics.” Jeryl Beer added“We’ve gone from a revolution against ‘taxation without representation’ to ‘I’ll vote for someone who taxes others to pay off my personal debts.'”
Kamens did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Biden, 81, unveiled the SAVE plan in July 2023, weeks after the Supreme Court overturned an attempt to forgive $430 billion in student loan debt for more than 40 million borrowers.
Kaptur had criticized the Biden administration’s move to unilaterally forgive the debt, citing political, financial and constitutional issues.
“What happens to the people who have paid off their loans?” she was quoted as saying in August 2022. Sandusky Register.
“What about people who didn’t take on that level of debt? What about people who put college on hold? What about the structural problems we see in the student loan system, where you go to a college admissions office, they give you a credit card, they take your money, you use that money to buy a car, a trip or whatever, but at the end of the day, you’re not graduating,” Kaptur continued.
“There was no consultation with Parliament. The last time I looked at the Constitution, you can’t affect the federal budget unless some bill is passed by Parliament,” she added.
“I think the president probably exceeded his authority in this case.”
The Supreme Court voted 6-3 to block Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona’s attempt to implement student loan forgiveness, with Chief Justice John Roberts saying the court “lacks ‘clear congressional authorization’ justifying the program at issue.”
“The question here is not whether something should be done, but who has the authority to do it,” Roberts wrote for the majority. “Similarly here, the Secretary of Education has unilaterally asserted the authority to relieve 43 million borrowers of $430 billion in student loan obligations. No Secretary has ever asserted such authority before.”
Roberts added that the administration has yet to show it has “express Congressional authorization” to justify the programs at issue.
Despite previous public opposition, Kaptur Voted Twice He spoke out against a House measure opposing the cancellation of federal loans, once before the Supreme Court’s decision and once after.
“Joe Biden’s unconstitutional student loan forgiveness facade is clearly the easiest way for him to buy votes, but Marcy Kaptur’s voting record in support of this plan shows how out of touch she is with Northwest Ohio voters,” Mike Marinella, spokesman for the Republican National Congressional Committee, said in a statement.
Democratic and Republican lawmakers also opposed the relief package, arguing it would force taxpayers who have paid off their loans or never attended college to shoulder the burden of other people’s student loans.
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana), ranking member of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, said the SAVE Plan is no exception.
“Make no mistake: Biden’s latest student loan plan simply shifts the burden from those who took out loans to Americans who never attended college or who have already made the commitment to repay their loans,” Cassidy said last July, slamming the income-contingent repayment rules as “irresponsible” and “unfair.”
As the Biden administration continues to phase out remaining student loan debt, Cassidy went further, accusing the president of engaging in an election-year “plot” to solicit votes.
“This is an unfair ploy to buy votes ahead of the election,” he said in April. “It does nothing to address the high costs of education, which are putting young people back into debt.”
