President Joe Biden's plan to wipe thousands of dollars in student loan debt for millions of Americans will be at stake as the Supreme Court is set to hear arguments on Tuesday.
In August, the White House mapped out a roadmap to eliminate some debt for a swath of middle- and low-income Americans. Potentially, people making under $125,000 annually could have their student loans reduced by $10,000. Those who have received Pell Grant funds could have a total of $20,000 wiped off of their balance.
A national student loan repayment freeze had been enacted after President Donald Trump declared a national emergency at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. The freeze was then extended by Trump and Biden under the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students Act several times since.
An estimated 43 million Americans would benefit from the forgiveness plan if the court sides with the Biden administration. At least 26 million debt holders have already applied, with 16 million of them approved.
If the case is decided against the relief plan, borrowers would have 60 days after the decision to begin making payments — many of whom would be paying for the first time in three years. At the latest, payments could resume in August if a decision has not been reached by June 30.
Israel rolled tanks into northern Gaza for what the military called a targeted raid aiming to destroy Hamas infrastructure. Meanwhile, the UN Security Council failed to pass two separate resolutions proposed by the U.S. and Russia on humanitarian aid for civilians in Gaza.
Republican Mike Johnson is the new speaker of the House, but the ally of Donald Trump inherits many of the same political problems that have tormented past GOP leaders.
President Joe Biden on Wednesday spoke out against retaliatory attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank in the aftermath of the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks on Israel. He also says he's redoubling his commitment to working on a two-state solution.
The U.N. warned on Wednesday that it is on the verge of running out of fuel in the Gaza Strip, forcing it to sharply curtail relief efforts in the territory blockaded and devastated by Israeli airstrikes since Hamas militants launched an attack on Israel more than two weeks ago.
The judge in Donald Trump’s civil fraud trial fined the former president $10,000 on Wednesday, saying Trump violated a limited gag order barring personal attacks on court staffers.
Republicans eagerly elected Rep. Mike Johnson as House speaker on Wednesday, elevating a deeply conservative but lesser-known leader to the seat of U.S. power and ending for now the political chaos in their majority.
With mail theft and postal carrier robberies up, law enforcement officials have made more than 600 arrests since May in a crackdown launched to address crime that includes carriers being accosted at gunpoint for their antiquated universal keys, the Postal Service announced Wednesday.