President Joe Biden on Sunday appeared to forget that he forgave billions of dollars in student loan debt through an unprecedented executive order, claiming that Congress authorized the plan.
"It's passed," Biden said of his plan to forgive up to $20,000 in student loan debt for each borrower. "I got it passed by a vote or two, and it's in effect."
Biden claims his executive order on student loans is a bill that passed Congress by one or two votes and that he recently signed into law
pic.twitter.com/LidAkKMJ3k— Eddie Zipperer (@EddieZipperer) October 24, 2022
But Biden effected the plan without congressional approval, through a controversial executive order drawing authority from a largely unknown law called the HEROES Act of 2003, which was passed to offer benefits to service members at the onset of the Iraq war.
Biden's mischaracterization of the plan is the latest flub for the president, who has on several occasions incorrectly recalled events. In 2021, Biden claimed none of his advisers warned him against withdrawing all U.S. troops from Afghanistan, even though his top generals testified to the contrary. And in September, Biden called out "Where's Jackie?" at an event, seemingly forgetting that Rep. Jackie Walorski (R., Ind.) had died in a car crash a month earlier.
Biden's debt cancellation scheme will cost $329 billion over 10 years, according to the National Taxpayers Union Foundation.
A federal appeals court on Friday temporarily blocked the plan, which faces a legal challenge from six state attorneys general.