Vulnerable Dems distance themselves from Biden lavish’ student loan forgiveness plan

Democrats in close elections are sounding the alarm on the White House’s proposal to cancel a portion of borrowers’ federal student-loan debt as they fend off attacks they are out of touch with the working class on economic issues.

Nevada Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D) broke with her peers by publicly disagreeing with President Joe Biden’s plan to forgive up to $10,000 in federal loans for individuals making less than $125,000 and households making less than $250,000.

“I don’t agree with today’s executive action because it doesn’t address the root problems that make college unaffordable,” Cortez Masto said in a statement on Thursday.

A Penn-Wharton Budget Model released this week found “a one-time maximum debt forgiveness of $10,000 per borrower will cost around $300 billion for borrowers with incomes less than $125,000,” which comes out to about $2,100 per taxpayer.

The White House plan proposes an additional $10,000 in loan forgiveness for any borrowers who had received a Pell Grant. Cortez Masto had proposed legislation to expand the grant program for lower-income students.

Her Republican opponent, former Nevada attorney general Adam Laxalt, called her a “rubber stamp” for the White House agenda on Twitter.

“The Biden Student Loan Bailout is unconstitutional, immoral, and one of the worst policies we’ve seen come out of the White House,” Laxalt tweeted Thursday.

Nevada’s Senate race is one of the most competitive of the upcoming midterms. In July, a poll put Biden’s approval rating in the state at 33% and found him losing hypothetical matchups against both former President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

It also found that Biden is doing poorly among Nevada’s Hispanics, especially against Trump.

“In potential general election matchups Trump leads Biden 45% to 37% and DeSantis leads Biden 38% to 34% among [Hispanic] voters in Nevada,” the polling firm’s executive director said in a statement.

In the Ohio Senate race to fill the seat vacated by retiring Republican Sen. Rob Portman, Rep. Tim Ryan (D) said that “waiving debt for those already on a trajectory to financial security sends the wrong message to the millions of Ohioans without a degree working just as hard to make ends meet.”

Cleveland.com noted Ryan had previously expressed support for forgiving $10,000 of student loan debt.

His GOP opponent is author JD Vance, whose book Hillbilly Elegy revitalized conservative discourse around blue-collar work and Middle America. He blasted Biden’s plan, saying it would “bail out the group of people least in need.”

Some Democratic strategists worried the White House’s surprise announcement would derail the party’s momentum on abortion following the Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

Two who spoke to The Wall Street Journal said they were worried their candidates will face accusations of prioritizing student-loan debt over other issues such as crime and inflation.