Chair’s Take on Student Loan Forgiveness

There has already been much criticism of the Biden Administration’s forgiveness of student debt, and such push-back is encouraging. Some critiques focus on the morality of punishing financially responsible citizens who incurred no debt or settled it against their counterparts’ irresponsibility, or the inefficiency of funding degrees which have proved themselves ungainful.

One angle which has not been explored in much of the recent criticism is the divergence between progressivist desire for wealth redistribution with progressivist policy’s tendency to concentrate wealth.

By forgiveness of student debt, progressives claim to alleviate the burden on struggling graduates. Progressives are obviously thinking about debt cancellation for former students, without realizing that delinquent student debt has to be paid to someone. The result is a bonanza for already wealthy financiers who are now rewarded for bankrolling ungainful degrees. Whereas these students in college were living on shoestrings, subsisting on ramen and buying thrice-used books, debt cancellation means payola for the deans clearing six figures, with on-campus housing, meals, car, full medical, dental and pension galore.

Though it’s unseemly to begrudge others’ material success – even those who bilk taxpayers for their lavish lifestyles  – progressives construct their worldview around the notion that wealth should be more evenly distributed. If that is the case, then ultimately progressives must take responsibility for the fact that their policies wind up concentrating vastly more wealth in the hands of fewer people.

Daniel Donnelly, Dutchess County Libertarian Party Chair