Green Bay Reporter

John Della Volpe, Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics polling director, is championing President Joe Biden's move to enact his student loan forgiveness plan as a win for the system.

“It’s about trust in politics, in government, in our system,” Della Volpe told WEAU this week. “It’s also about trust in the individual, which in this case is President Biden.”

Biden made his decision official on Aug. 24, formally announcing the forgiveness of up to $10,000 for each student’s debt, just as he vowed to do while still a candidate for office. The payment freeze has also been extended through Dec. 31 of this year.

The president’s actions have already been met with widespread opposition from those—including some Democrats—who argue that he pledged to do even more while still on the campaign trail.

At the same time, Republicans are criticizing the move as being unfair to all the other taxpayers now saddled with paying off the debts of others.

With more than 43 million Americans now having federal student debt and the president’s public approval rating in decline, Della Volpe is clear about what impact the program could have, asserting that it “adds an additional tailwind to an already improving position with young people,” the WEAU report said

Details of Biden’s plan, which the Republican National Committee has blasted as a “handout to the rich” by further handcuffing lower-income taxpayers, call for an income cap limiting the forgiveness to only those earning less than $125,000 a year.

Biden’s actions come soon after University of Wisconsin (UW) System President Jay Rothman announced in a press release a tuition assistance program for all UW campuses across the state. The UW program paves the way for students whose households earn less than $62,000 annually to be eligible for last dollar funding that could make their entire tuition bill free for all four years of a bachelor’s program.