The emergency powers flip-flop

But student debt forgiveness is a Democratic base issue, so it was not particularly surprising that the party’s erstwhile emergency-powers hawks passed over their Trump-era compunctions in favor of responding like this.

DeFazio: “I support the Biden admin’s federal student loan forgiveness.”

Cohen: “Today’s targeted student debt relief will lower costs for millions of working Americans.”

Schiff: Biden’s cancellation was “a huge accomplishment. Still, I’d love to see him do more. Canceling $50,000 for all would fire up our economy and keep doors of higher education open to all. Let’s get this done!”

Escobar: “This is an important step to bolster and grow the middle class; I’m thrilled to see it!”

Here, too, Slotkin was an outlier, saying she was “happy for the folks who will get relief from this policy” but that “this is a one-time bandaid that doesn’t get to the root of the problem.” But neither did she call out Biden’s invocation of emergency powers to accomplish the action.