Here are the Republicans the White House put on blast for bashing student loan forgiveness despite having their own PPP loans forgiven
Left to right, top to bottom: Joe Raedle/Getty Images, Bill Clark/Roll Call/Getty Images, Drew Angerer/Getty Images, Samuel Corum/Getty Images, Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call, Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
- Biden announced plans to cancel some student debt for borrowers making under $125,000.
- Republicans in Congress have been vocal about their opposition to the move.
- The White House called out some of them for receiving PPP loan forgiveness.
The White House on Thursday called out Republican members of Congress who have criticized President Joe Biden's student-loan-forgiveness plan despite having some of their own pandemic-related loans forgiven.
Biden on Wednesday announced plans to cancel up to $20,000 in student debt for Pell Grant recipients, and up to $10,000 in student debt for federal borrowers who make less than $125,000 a year. Coupled with this announcement was the fifth extension of the student-loan payment pause through December 31, and he noted it will be the "final" extension — meaning borrowers should prepare to resume payments come January.
While many Democratic lawmakers lauded the relief and vowed to continue pushing for even more forgiveness down the road, Republicans were quick to slam the debt cancellation, calling it unfair to other borrowers and taxpayers. For example, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell on Wednesday called the relief "astonishingly unfair."
"President Biden's student loan socialism is a slap in the face to every family who sacrificed to save for college, every graduate who paid their debt, and every American who chose a certain career path or volunteered to serve in our Armed Forces in order to avoid taking on debt," he said.
But some of the most vocal Republican critics of Biden's student-debt relief are those who have gotten other loans forgiven themselves. A thread on Thursday posted by the official White House Twitter account named six Republican lawmakers who had Paycheck Protection Program loans forgiven that had spoken out against cancelling student debt.
Representatives for each lawmaker did not respond to Insider's requests for comment.
PPP loans were part of the $2.2 trillion CARES Act, which was signed into law at the end of March 2020. The loans were meant to help businesses as the country locked down to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Per the Small Business Administration, which administered the loans, "Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) borrowers may be eligible for loan forgiveness if the funds were used for eligible payroll costs, payments on business mortgage interest payments, rent, or utilities during either the 8- or 24-week period after disbursement."
Here are the lawmakers the White House called out.
John Bazemore-Pool/Getty Images
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia said this week that student loan forgiveness was "completely unfair" to "taxpayers that never took out a student loan."
Data from the Small Business Administration that was compiled by ProPublica showed Greene's business had $183,504 in PPP loans forgiven, which included the original loan of $182,300 and accrued interest. The relief money was spent on payroll, according to the data.
Associated Press/Charles Dharapak
Rep. Vern Buchanan of Florida said Wednesday the student-loan forgiveness plan was "reckless" and "unfair" to Americans without student-loan debt "who played by the rules."
A company Buchanan owns a $50 million stake in, according to the Tampa Bay Times, had more than $2.3 million in PPP loans forgiven, per the ProPublica database, which said the funds were spent on payroll.
Al Drago/Pool via AP
Rep. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma spoke out against canceling student debt on Wednesday, writing: "We do not need farmers and ranchers, small business owners, and teachers in Oklahoma paying the debts of Ivy League lawyers and doctors across the US."
He also tweeted: "There is no such thing as free lunch."
Companies that are owned by Mullin, according to The Associated Press, had more than $1.4 million in PPP loans forgiven, the ProPublica data showed. The loaned money was spent on payroll, the data said.
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Rep. Kevin Hern of Oklahoma condemned the student-loan forgiveness plan and said it forced working-class Americans to "pay for other people's college degrees."
A corporation that is controlled by Hern, according to Bloomberg, had more than $1 million in PPP loans forgiven, per the ProPublica data, which said the loaned funds were spent on payroll and healthcare.
Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images
Rep. Mike Kelly of Pennsylvania said canceling student loans was "bad policy" and "unfair," saying it asked "plumbers and carpenters to pay off the loans of Wall Street advisors and lawyers."
Multiple companies that are owned by Kelly, according to Politico, had at least $715,000 forgiven, all spent on payroll, the ProPublica data showed.
The White House said Kelly had more than $987,000 forgiven, but Insider could not confirm that higher amount.
Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida said Wednesday "instead of wiping away student loan debt with a presidential executive order, we ought to allow people who are victims of predatory systems to declare bankruptcy."
"It would shatter the foundation of higher-ed finance," Gaetz continued.
A company Gaetz has reported being a shareholder of had $482,321 in PPP loans forgiven, with the relief funds spent on payroll, the ProPublica data showed.
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