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Student Loan Forgiveness Court Bullshit

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Here’s a timeline summarizing the political landscape surrounding Biden’s student debt relief program and the republicans trying to stop it if you’re the kind of person that doesn’t have time to actually read articles but still wants to kind of stay up-to-date on what’s going on.

Six Republican-led States

September 29, 2022: Plaintiffs filed the case

Six Republican-led states (Nebraska, Missouri, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, and South Carolina) filed a federal lawsuit to block the student loan forgiveness program on the grounds that there isn’t a statute that permits President Biden to do this and that it’s “economically unwise and inherently unfair.”

October 21, 2022: Judges dismissed the case

US District Judge Henry Edward Autrey dismissed a Republican-led lawsuit by six states that challenged the loan-forgiveness program. Judge Autrey concluded that the states do not have the legal right to sue the federal government over how it uses taxpayer funds.

October 22, 2022: Plaintiffs file for appeal

The six states appealed Judge Autrey’s decision, sending the case to the conservative panel of judges on the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals where they granted an emergency stay to temporarily block student loan forgiveness. This move only prevents the federal government from discharging relief. Eligible borrowers are still encouraged to apply for student debt relief and the federal government can review those applications and prepare them for relief.

November 14, 2022: Judge grants the appeal

A unanimous three-judge panel (made up of two Trump-appointed judges and one appointee of former President George W. Bush) on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit ruled in favor of the six conservative-led states, granting a preliminary injunction against President Biden’s student loan relief plan.

November 18, 2022: DOJ asks Supreme Court to lift the appeal

Now that there’s been a decision of sorts in this case, the U.S. Department of Justice has asked the Supreme Court to allow the plan to go through.

3This concludes this course case with the six (6) Republican-led states winning against President Joe Biden. The consequences of this block included the immediate stop of the student loan forgiveness plan that started in 2022 and loans unexpectedly and suddenly reopening even if they were paid off before applying for forgiveness.

Conservative Wisconsin Taxpayers Group

October 19, 2022: Plaintiffs filed their complaint

On the day that the student loan forgiveness application official launched, a Wisconsin taxpayers group called the Brown County Taxpayers Association filed a request to the Supreme Court to block the student loan forgiveness program on the grounds that the president does not have the legal authority to implement the program.

October 21, 2022: Judge dismissed the case

Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett dismissed the challenge brought up by the Wisconsin taxpayers group. Justice Barrett’s rejection did not cite a reason, simply that she declined to refer the matter to the full court.

Two Conservative Individuals

November 10, 2022: Federal Judge ruled in favor of the Plaintiffs

Federal Judge Mark Pittman of the Northern District of Texas, an appointee of former President Donald Trump, ruled against President Biden’s debt forgiveness plan in a case brought by Myra Brown and Alexander Taylor, two conservatives with student loan debt. Brown was ineligible because their loans are commercially held while Taylor was only eligible for $10k instead of $20k due to not being a Pell Grant recipient. Their grievance was not with the idea of student loan forgiveness, but are suing on the grounds of not having been provided opportunity to disagree with the program’s notice-and-comment rulemaking procedures under the Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”) and that President Biden doesn’t have the authority to do it. The judge agreed with the latter, using that as their reason for ruling in the Plaintiffs’ favor.

Editor's Note: This article was originally published on , and was last reviewed on .

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