President Biden did not mention his recent student loan handout during his last four speeches while hitting the campaign trail for the Democratic Party as they gear up for the midterm elections this fall, raising questions about whether the White House initiative is popular with the majority of American voters.
Biden’s student loan handout would pass $10,000 in student debt for low- to mid-income households and up to $20,000 for Pell Grant recipients onto the average American taxpayer. The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget projected the handout could cost Americans $600 billion.
After the initial announcement, the student loan handout appeared to be a win for the Democratic Party, but Biden has avoided the subject in his last four speeches geared toward firing up the Democratic base going into the final months of the 2022 midterm elections.
While the plan could energize support for Democrats among young voters, some of whom will directly benefit from the money, it has been criticized as a handout for the professional class and unfair to all those who have paid back loans in the past. The population that is not directly benefiting from the handout, specifically voters older than 50, may question the fairness and constitutionality of the action.
BIDEN’S STUDENT LOAN HANDOUT WILL EXACERBATE EXPLODING COLLEGE COSTS
According to the Institute for Democracy and Higher Education, college students set record high voter turnout numbers in 2020, with 66% participation in the presidential election, a number up 14% from the prior presidential election.
Republicans have largely been running on issues of inflation and the tanking economy, but Biden has been focused his midterm message on “extreme MAGA Republicans,” claiming they are a “threat to the democracy.” This rhetoric was mentioned in each of his speeches from the past week and indicates a new midterm strategy from the Democrats.
The GOP views the strategy as an attempt to shift the focus from unpopular policies.
“Joe Biden bailed out wealthy college grads, yet is shy to mention it. Could it be because his bailout is extremely unpopular and out of touch? Or is it because it is unfair to those who chose a different route or paid off their loans already? Or because it further fuels already rampant inflation? Regardless, this ‘win’ reveals who Joe Biden really is: an out-of-touch, career politician who couldn’t care less about hardworking Americans,” Republican National Committee spokesperson Will O’Grady told Fox News Digital in an exclusive statement.
The White House did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Though he did not mention the student loan handout, Biden did note other legislative victories during his speeches, such as signing into law the Manchin-Schumer climate bill, labeled the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, the CHIPS and Science bill, and the American Rescue Plan.
