# SCOTUS deciding on Biden's student loan forgiveness program (has decided, June 30, 2023) **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [February 28, 2023, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507 "2023-02-28T19:42:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2023, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507/21 "2023-03-02T04:07:19Z")
> [@Mr.E](#): > > The shortsightedness of Republicans never fails to amuse me, insofar as when a Republican is president the party bends over backwards to extend and protect the president’s powers, but when a Democrat is president they act shocked and appalled that anyone could ever be so power-hungry. I know their real goal is to make Democratic presidents impossible, but every time maximizing executive power comes back to bite them it’s funny. Obama used Bush-era presidential powers much to Republican chagrin, and now Biden is exercising the exact same sort of powers Trump deployed to equal dismay. Don’t forget that in 1996 Newt Gingrich gave a line item veto to Clinton. Maybe he thought Robert Dole would win the presidency. The first time Clinton tried to use it the GOP went apeshit and took him to court and had the whole thing thrown out. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2023, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507/22 "2023-03-02T13:35:35Z")
> [@slicedalone](#): > > do you suppose the apparent political bias on the SC (lefties leaning one way, righties the other) would be reversed? No. For example, Dems helped pass pandemic relief, even though it helped Trump politically. OTOH, Republicans routinely vote against infrastructure bills and then take credit for the projects in their state. Both parties are NOT equal. I think the normal Justices would be fine with the student loan relief under any president, since it’s so statutorily obviously fine. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2023, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507/23 "2023-03-04T01:57:47Z")
> [@Buck\_Godot](#): > > > [@Lance\_Turbo](#): > > > > Meanwhile, the Court’s Republican appointees seemed more concerned that giving too much power to a presidential administration is itself inherently dangerous, and thus the Court must create some extratextual limits on the administration’s power > > Which of course contradicts the conservatives previous embrace of a [unitary executive](https://www.acslaw.org/expertforum/the-specter-of-dictatorship-and-the-supreme-courts-embrace-of-the-unitary-executive-theory/), but I guess that that constitutional theory only applies to Republican presidents. Not saying a lot for supposed conservative opposition to judicial activism either. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2023, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507/24 "2023-03-04T02:00:38Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > Fair enough. I would have thought they would try to maintain at least the public perception of not being a tool of the far right a little longer. > > But, obviously, the court system needs to be delegitimized and broken for their ends, so this is just that step. I think the conservatives feel they’ve won and it’s time to start treating America like a conquered territory subject to their rule. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2023, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507/25 "2023-06-01T21:45:49Z")
> **[Senate votes to overturn Biden’s student loan relief program](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/senate-vote-block-bidens-student-debt-relief-program-rcna87223)** > > Biden has said he'll veto the measure, but his loan forgiveness program faces its true test at the Supreme Court, which is expected to rule on a challenge to the plan this month. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2023, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507/26 "2023-06-02T01:04:08Z")
And the Dems’ reaction to Tester, Manchin and Sinema? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2023, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507/27 "2023-06-02T01:24:26Z")
I’m not sure what that sentence fragment was supposed to mean. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2023, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507/28 "2023-06-02T01:42:43Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > I’m not sure what that sentence fragment was supposed to mean. ⁢ If you’re talking about **Smapti** , those are all three Democrats who crossed the aisle to vote against a Democratic policy. I think it makes sense to ask if there will be any repercussions for doing so. I’d say not yet, but only because the Democratic majority is so thin. Later maybe, but it could also be Dems knowing that Biden will veto it, and doing it for local political reasons relative to their state. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2023, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507/29 "2023-06-02T01:45:19Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > those are all three Democrats who crossed the aisle to vote against a Democratic policy. Sinema is no longer a Democrat; she is now an independent. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2023, 1:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507/30 "2023-06-02T01:46:35Z")
> [@PastTense](#): > > > [@BigT](#): > > > > those are all three Democrats who crossed the aisle to vote against a Democratic policy. ⁢ > > Sinema is no longer a Democrat; she is now an independent. ⁢ True, and I did forget that. But she still caucuses with them. ---
**Author:** ![flurb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@flurb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flurb)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2023, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507/31 "2023-06-30T14:49:20Z")
The Administration’s plan is rejected by the SC 6-3 with Roberts writing the majority opinion. > **[Supreme Court rejects Biden student loan forgiveness plan](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/06/30/supreme-court-decision-student-loan-forgiveness/)** > > President Biden insisted his administration has the authority to forgive student loan debt under the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students Act of 2003. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2023, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507/32 "2023-06-30T15:05:40Z")
Major questions doctrine: The way that conservatives can change their mind on executive powers as it pleases them. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2023, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507/33 "2023-06-30T15:26:15Z")
These rulings are really paving the way for Biden to run in '24 against SCOTUS. No abortion rights, plus suddenly becoming thousands of dollars poorer, is going to have an impact on young people voting in '24, I predict. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2023, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507/34 "2023-06-30T15:27:01Z")
Not that he can do anything about those things without a senate super majority, but it should make for good campaign materials. ---
**Author:** ![MulderMuffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldermuffin/32/2862_2.png) [@MulderMuffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MulderMuffin)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2023, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507/35 "2023-06-30T16:25:45Z")
The bad thing here, to me, is not that they decided against Biden. It’s that they ignored the fact that there was a much a lack of standing in this case as in the one brought by the two students that they did dismiss for lack of standing, as well as a lack of actual harm. (In the same vein, the “christian” website designer had no actual harm because she’s never even started a business, much less been asked by a gay couple to design a website.) They’re making whatever law they want through whatever nebulous cases they manage to direct their way. Did Biden have the authority through the HEROES Act? Maybe. I can see an argument either way because the wording is pretty vague in the statute. The Supreme Court decided he had the authority to modify and waive, but not cancel. Can’t he waive all future payments, modify repayments to be 0? Maybe he should just call a press conference, say that the Supreme Court said that I actually do have the authority to modify or waive, so now you must pay $1 per month and all late fees and interest are waived. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2023, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507/36 "2023-06-30T16:26:06Z")
I think it’s long overdue to kill the filibuster. If Biden had forgiven loans for people who bought yachts, the best supreme court money can buy wouldn’t have even granted cert for a challenge. The motto of this court seems to be “We got ours, fuck you!”. When Democrats win the House, Senate, and presidency in 2024, I say let them forgive $50K in student debt families making less than $250K per year. If that means killing the filibuster, let it be done. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2023, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507/37 "2023-06-30T16:32:51Z")
Another good ruling, IMO. ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2023, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507/38 "2023-06-30T17:07:50Z")
So I’m reading reactions that often say two things: 1. The/an injured party cited in this claim that their profits were never affected by the program. 2. This ruling opens the door for corporations and other businesses to sue governments when government action affects profits. True or no? ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2023, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507/39 "2023-06-30T17:38:03Z")
I have set it before I will say it again: America has socialism for the wealthy and capitalism for everybody else. There is no more glaring indicator of this fact than how the Supreme Court has handled the difference between PPP loans, and student loans. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [June 30, 2023, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507/40 "2023-06-30T17:57:38Z")
I’m not in favor of people ducking out on their loans on purpose, but if they’ve tried in good faith to pay back loans for a long time - say, 10 years of consistent payments - and just can’t because it’s too difficult, they deserve a mulligan. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotus-deciding-on-bidens-student-loan-forgiveness-program-has-decided-june-30-2023/980507.md?page=3)