Did President Biden write a check he can’t cash?

President Joe Biden participates in a CNN town hall. Photo from nymag.com

After just a month in office President Biden has already begun to bend on several promises he made during his campaign and is now facing backlash for rejecting a proposal to cancel $50,000 in student debt stating point-blank, “I will not make that happen.”

During a CNN town hall on Tuesday, an attendee asked Biden about Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s proposal to cancel up to $50,000 in federal student debt per borrower.

The president said he doesn’t want those that attended elite schools such as Harvard and Yale and often go on to make high salaries to have their debt erased and added that he would instead prioritize childhood education for disadvantaged communities.

“It depends on whether, or not you go to a public university, or a private university,” Biden said.

Since I have started school I have had to take out several loans in addition to a pell grant to pay for tuition, meal plans and student housing. College is expensive and loans will begin to rack up, but I don’t think President Biden is wrong for not canceling $50,000 in student loans, but I don’t agree with him that it should depend on the university you chose to attend.

Malina Murray, a sophomore business administration student, has not yet been affected by student loans.

“As a scholarship recipient student loans have yet to directly affect me however I don’t believe that what institution you attend should determine whether your loans are forgiven,” said Murray. “I believe everyone who has received assistance in any form whether this is financial aid, loans, or even grants we each had a reason.”

Considering President Biden’s current position he has done well. Most would assume that the president has all the power, but those who truly know the policies and procedures government officials undergo would understand how far, or how much the president has done.

Shakeriya Ganious, a sophomore interdisciplinary social sciences student at Florida State University, expected this exact reaction from President Biden.

“$50,000 it’s unrealistic at this point in time,” said Ganious.

My support for the Biden-Harris administration has not changed. I look forward to seeing what the administration does next. They promised a lot within their platforms and I believe wholeheartedly that these are things they actually plan to accomplish. Although they may not appear in the traditional sense, or how we expect, I think we will see some change, or positive affects.