Warren urges Biden to write off student debt: ‘biggest stimulus we could add’

His. Elizabeth warrenElizabeth WarrenDefense overnight: Trump orders troop withdrawal from Afghanistan and Iraq | Key Republicans call Trump plan an ‘Educare for All’ ‘mistake’ would free students from oppressive debt Democratic senators urge Facebook to take action against anti-Muslim bigotry READ MORE (D-Mass.) Urged the president-elect on Tuesday Joe bidenJoe Biden 46% of voters say Trump should give in immediately: Michigan County poll reverses course, votes unanimously to certify election results GOP Senator: Trump shouldn’t fire top cybersecurity official to cancel student debt, calling it the “single biggest stimulus” to a struggling economy, a dispute among economists.

Speaking at the New York Times Dealbook Summit, Warren said canceling student debt was part of Biden and vice president-elect Kamala harrisKamala Harris On The Money: Trump’s Controversial Fed Candidate Stuck | Economists warn of mismatch between vaccine and recovery | Business group calls for national mask warrant, COVID-19 relief Biden, Harris briefed by national security experts amid obstacles to transition Graham becomes center of Georgia storm MOREelectoral mandate of.

“For me, it’s a mandate for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris to do what we can, to write off the student loan debt of tens of millions of Americans, [the] the biggest stimulus we could add to the economy, ”she said.

Minority Leader in the Senate Charles SchumerChuck Schumer Organizations Push Congressional Leaders to Prioritize Tech Antitrust Report Biden could lose Georgia Senate races on his own. Puerto Rico state sparks congressional interest after election. (DN.Y.) said this week that he and Warren had a proposal to write off $ 50,000 in debt through executive action.

“We believe Joe Biden can do it with the pen rather than with legislation,” he said.

But Biden has yet to endorse this approach. On Monday, he said he was in favor of canceling $ 10,000 in debt, but cited House Democrats’ legislation as a way to advance policy. Debt, he said, was a serious problem.

“It holds people back. They have real problems. They have to make choices between paying their student loan and paying their rent, ”he says.

Some economists, however, are skeptical of claims that canceling student debt is a very effective form of stimulus, given that the vast majority of those with student debt are educated and therefore have access to better jobs. paid and tend to be better paid.

“It’s not a great form of stimulus,” said Adam Looney, economist at Brookings.

Interventions that target the unemployed and poorer members of society tend to be more empowering, as low-income earners tend to spend money, boosting the economy, rather than saving it.