On Tuesday, Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) discussed his opposition to President Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan, saying it is “excessive.”
“I just thought that it was excessive. I just respectfully disagree on that,” Manchin said, according to The Hill.
“I think there’s other ways. When people were calling me from back in West Virginia, I would give them all the options they had that would reduce their loan by going to work in the federal government,” he added.
Last month, Biden announced his student loan forgiveness plan, which includes the cancelation of $10,000 in student loan debt for borrowers making less than $125,000 per year.
According to an analysis from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, the total cost of Biden’s plan could exceed $1 trillion, and the majority of the benefits from the plan would be to individuals in higher income quintiles.
Other Democrats have spoken out against the plan. Democrat Rep. Chris Pappas (NH) recently released a statement saying that student loan forgiveness needs to be done through the legislative progress, not by the president.
“We all know the cost of higher education is crushing families … but this announcement by President Biden is no way to make policy and sidesteps Congress and our oversight and fiscal responsibilities,” Pappas said. “Any plan to address student debt should go through the legislative process, and it should be more targeted and paid for so it doesn’t add to the deficit.”
Democrat Rep. Tim Ryan (OH) also warned that the plan “sends the wrong message to the millions of Ohioans without a degree working just as hard to make ends meet.”
