Republican offensive against student debt forgiveness: "Shifts responsibility from the wealthy to working"

A group of 22 Republican state governors sent a letter to Joe Biden on Monday denouncing his student loan forgiveness plan for shifting responsibility from the wealthy to "working Americans." They pointed out that the President's plan will cost each taxpayer an additional $2,000 ($600 billion in total) amid runaway inflation and requested he withdraw the plan.

Letter Against Student Debt Forgiveness Plan by VozMedia on Scribd

In the letter, the governors emphasized their support for making "higher education more affordable and accessible to students in our states." However, they showed their opposition to "his (Biden's) plan to force American taxpayers to pay off the student loan debt of an elite few."

The governors, who represent states such as Florida, Texas, Arizona, Montana and Georgia, denounced that Biden's plan forces low-income families to shoulder the debt burden of wealthy Americans. "Only 16-17 percent of Americans have federal student loan debt, and yet, your plan will require their debts be redistributed and paid by the vast majority of taxpayers. Shifting the burden of debt from the wealthy to working Americans has a regressive impact that harms lower income families," they stated.

Due to all of this, they called on the president to withdraw the plan, recalling the words of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi when she voiced a year ago that debt forgiveness was not up to Biden but to Congress.

The governors said Biden's plan would lead to more borrowing, higher college tuition and higher inflation. "Your plan kicks the can down the road and makes today’s problems worse for tomorrow’s students," the Republican leaders said.

Voters oppose debt forgiveness

On the other hand, a poll by Convention of States Action and Trafalgar Group indicated that a majority of voters will not support candidates who are in favor of President Biden's student loan forgiveness program.

According to the survey, more than 55% of likely voters say they are "less likely" to vote in the midterm elections for a candidate who is an advocate of the plan. Forty-nine percent of respondents said they are "much less likely" to support that candidate.

On the flip side, the poll found that 44% of voters say they are "more likely" to vote for a candidate who supports Biden's student loan forgiveness plan," while nearly 31% say they are "much more likely" to do so.

The survey polled more than 1,000 likely midterm voters between September 2 and 5.