Republicans oppose student-loan forgiveness while Democrats see it as necessary for high-paying jobs

As the two chambers of Congress vote against US President Joe Biden’s student-loan forgiveness plan, Republicans are against it, while Democrats defend it as a way of expanding access to good-paying jobs. Republicans attack it as a debt transfer from college-educated elites to the rest of the country, while Democrats argue that student-loan forgiveness is only one piece of the workforce development puzzle, alongside other paths to higher-wage employment like vocational training and apprenticeships. Many Democrats reiterate the need for multiple paths to high-paying jobs. Although Republicans say student-loan forgiveness is a giveaway to college-educated elites, the vast majority of debt forgiven would go to Pell Grant recipients. Meanwhile, the Biden administration has offered states hundreds of millions of dollars for apprenticeship programs. 

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Joe Bowman is a Democratic Representative from New York. He is in favor of student-loan forgiveness as a path to a good-paying job. Bowman insists that multiple paths to high-paying jobs need to be provided to help meet the demand of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Many people find it helpful to come out of debt, such as through Biden’s payment pause. However, with Republicans trying to end it, it will be tough on working-class people.