SCHUMER SPEAKS DIRECTLY TO NY STUDENTS ABOUT HIS STUDENT LOAN DEBT PLAN

By Sean Lanigan

On Wednesday, March 17th, Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY) hosted a conference call with New York college students to discuss his plan to get rid of up to $50,000 in student loan debt per student. Schumer believes that if he is able to push this through, it will help people who are struggling financially.

Prior to the event, Schumer stated, “Millions of young Americans, including so many New Yorkers and their families have been crushed by student loan debt, greatly impeding their ability to begin careers and build the financial resources needed to rent apartments, buy homes, start families, or just simply build their futures.”

The New York Senator presented some staggering numbers from his state. New Yorkers owe a lot more than the national average. Schumer estimated that 2.4 million New Yorkers owe about $89.5 billion in federal student loans. Schumer stressed that the government has to create ways to make college a leg up for people to advance in the real world. He also believes that President Biden has the ability to use his executive powers to make this plan happen, avoiding the need to go through Congress. Schumer encouraged a national movement to contact the president to cancel up to $50,000 in debt for federal student borrowers.

Five Towns College Mass Comm student Aaron McLaughlin reflected on this proposal, "I think Schumer's plan will help, but I don't think students should be totally exempt from paying loans. I would like to see everyone meet each other halfway."

The Senator believes his debt reduction plan would be a huge boost to the economy because instead of paying federal loans, students can use that money to do things like go out to restaurants or buy a new car.