Pundits across the political spectrum reacted to the Supreme Court’s Friday decision to overturn the Biden administration’s student loan forgiveness plan. 

The Details: Writing for the court’s six conservative justices, Chief Justice John Roberts said the HEROES Act of 2003 — the legal basis for Biden’s plan — only gave the executive branch the power to “incrementally” modify debt repayment policy, not to “fundamentally” alter it. Roberts’ opinion included a quote from former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) saying only Congress had “the power for debt forgiveness.”

Reactions Opposing the Ruling: Perspectives opposing the ruling came primarily from left-rated voices. Progressive activist Nina Turner framed student debt as a “massive problem” and labeled the ruling “devastating” and “un-American.” Furthermore, a UC Berkeley law professor argued in the Los Angeles Times (Lean Left bias) that the court’s majority had wrongly interpreted the HEROES Act’s “plain language” allowing the education secretary to “waive or modify” debt policy. Meanwhile, some center-rated business outlets warned that student loan payments could slow the economy.

Reactions Supporting the Ruling: Perspectives supporting the ruling came primarily from right-rated voices. Some opinions framed Biden’s plan as a “power grab” or a “handout.” Washington Examiner (Lean Right bias) columnist Timothy P. Carney accused Democrats of “stoking hatred toward the court” and agreed with Roberts’ argument that the power to cancel such a large amount of debt rested with Congress, not the president.