President Joe Biden’s student loan debt relief plan is back on hold just one day after being given the green light to move forward.
A federal judge in Georgia let the Biden administration move forward with a plan to cancel debt for more than 25 million borrowers. Less than 24 hours later, a new judge in the case granted an injunction at states’ request on Thursday.
The quick turnaround is due to a lawsuit filed in September by seven Republican-led states that aims to stop Biden’s plan from taking effect. The states — Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Missouri, North Dakota, and Ohio — argued the Department of Education’s new debt cancellation effort is illegal.
After the federal judge in Georgia let a temporary restraining order that previously halted the plan expire and transferred the case to the Eastern District of Missouri, the Education Department appeared on track to move forward with the program on Wednesday.
U.S. District Judge J. Randal Hall in Georgia found that Georgia lacked standing to sue against the relief plan and that the state could not be the host for the case. Hall moved the case to Missouri because the lawsuit hinges on the idea that the Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority, or Mohela, is the agent being harmed irreparably by Biden’s plan.
Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, a Republican, and other state attorneys general petitioned the court for an injunction due to the lawsuit. U.S. District Judge Matthew T. Schelp in Missouri sided with the Republican-led states, saying they are “likely to succeed” with their argument.
The preliminary injunction prohibits the Biden administration “from mass canceling student loans, forgiving any principal or interest, not charging borrowers accrued interest, or further implementing any other actions under the Rule or instructing federal contractors to take such actions.”
“Today is a huge victory for every working American who won’t have to foot the bill for someone else’s Ivy League debt,” Bailey said in a statement.
“I paid for my education in blood, sweat, and tears in service to my country, so this fight is personal for me. We will continue to lead the way for working Americans who are being preyed upon by unelected federal bureaucrats in Washington, D.C.,” the statement continued.
The Department of Education expressed frustration with the decision in a statement to the Washington Examiner.
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“The Department of Education is extremely disappointed by this ruling on our proposed debt relief rules, which have not yet even been finalized. This lawsuit was brought by Republican elected officials who made clear they will stop at nothing to prevent millions of their own constituents from getting breathing room on their student loans,” a department spokesperson said.
“We will continue to vigorously defend these proposals in court. We will not stop fighting to fix the broken student loan system and provide support and relief to borrowers across the country,” the spokesperson added.
