Washington, D.C. — Last week, President Biden made a historic announcement on student loan forgiveness that is expected to significantly impact Latinos and low to middle-income borrowers who carry a larger student debt burden. Following the news, Republican Attorneys General leaped at the opportunity to interfere in hopes of denying debt relief to tens of millions of borrowers, with the Washington Post saying: “In recent days, a number of GOP attorneys general from states including Arizona, Missouri and Texas have met privately to discuss a strategy that could see multiple cases filed in different courts around the country, according to a person familiar with their thinking who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the confidential talks.”

Statement from Geoff Burgan, DAGA Communications Director:

“We’ve seen these sorts of attacks from Republicans AGs time and again. While our Democratic AGs are on the side of protecting borrowers and holding predatory institutions accountable, Republicans are waging a war on borrowers and student loan relief. There’s a clear choice this fall: Democratic AG candidates who support borrowers, or Republican AGs who are doing everything they can to block our country’s progress.”

As Common Dreams reported earlier this week, “Republican attorneys general and corporate advocacy groups are exploring ways to sue the Biden administration over its newly announced plan to cancel $10,000 in federal student loan debt for most borrowers, hoping the conservative-packed U.S. judiciary will strike down the executive action and deny badly needed relief to around 40 million people.”

As the primary enforcers of consumer laws, Democratic AGs have been at the forefront of this fight — investigating for-profit colleges, holding them accountable, and pushing for federal student loan forgiveness. The Biden Administration’s action is a huge step forward and will provide relief for millions of Americans and give them a fair shot at achieving their dreams. Democratic AGs will continue to work with the Biden Administration to address the student debt crisis and create a stronger economy and middle class.

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