A day after President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness program was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, Alaska Sen. Dan Sullivan applauded the decision, emphasizing that the ruling underscored the lack of legal authority to arbitrarily cancel student loan debt from the Oval Office.
Sullivan, who has been a critic of the $400 billion scheme that transferred student debt to taxpayers, highlighted the doubts expressed at the time by President Biden and former Speaker Nancy Pelosi about their legal authority to implement such a measure, even while Biden was taking liberties with the HEROES Act and applying to liberally — and unconstitutionally.
“The Supreme Court made it clear today that they don’t have that authority. It is neither fair nor legally sound to force Americans to shoulder the burden of others’ student loan debt,” Sullivan say, adding that the ruling was a victory for hardworking parents and students who had diligently paid for their higher education.
While acknowledging the heavy burden of student loan debt faced by many Americans and Alaskans, Sullivan stressed the need to address the root causes.
“I also recognize that many Americans and Alaskans are faced with crushing student loan debt. We must work together to get skyrocketing university tuition under control and work to make sure that good paying jobs await graduates,” he said.
Earlier this year, Senator Sullivan joined with 43 Republican senators in filing an amicus brief calling on the Supreme Court to strike down President Biden’s student loan cancellation program, because of its constitutional problems.
Sullivan was a cosponsor of a Congressional Review Act resolution seeking to overturn the student loan cancellation program. On June 1, the Senate passed the resolution with a vote of 52-46, further demonstrating the opposition to the program among Republican lawmakers, as well as several Democrats.
Rep. Mary Peltola, a Democrat, had favored the transfer to taxpayers of the debt owed by millions of American students. The measure passed the House without her vote, but is no longer necessary, as the Biden activity has now been struck down by the Supreme Court.
