As a policy it’s been dismissed, trivialized, and now back-burnered by a sympathetic President. But it would be a game-changer.
By Nora-Kathleen Berryhill, The Progressive Magazine
When Joe Biden became the Democratic presidential nominee in 2020, he sat down with the runner-up, Senator Bernie Sanders, Independent of Vermont, and created the Biden-Sanders Unity Task Force to merge some of Sanders’s most popular policy proposals into Biden’s comparatively moderate platform. Co-chaired by U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Democrat of New York, and former Secretary of State John Kerry, the task force produced 110 pages of progressive policy recommendations, ranging from establishing a $15 federal minimum wage and universal health care, to calling for better federal oversight of police and adopting a climate framework similar to Ocasio-Cortez’s “Green New Deal.”

Collaboration with progressives also pushed Biden to take a slightly bolder stance on the higher-education affordability crisis. As Sanders’s campaign push in the 2020 primaries to cancel student debt and make public universities and colleges free was a major mobilizing force among young voters, Biden promised to cancel $10,000 of federal student loan debt per person and to make both two- and four-year public colleges and universities free for students with family incomes under $125,000.
These policies went further than some expected, but they weren’t revolutionary. After all, broad bipartisan support already existed for a more expansive approach than what Biden proposed: An estimated 63 percent of Americans (and, notably, 52 percent of Republicans under fifty who have not completed a college degree) believe that public colleges and universities should be made tuition-free for all U.S. students. And advocacy groups urged President Biden to adopt a bicameral resolution by Democratic lawmakers in February 2021 to cancel $50,000 in student loans for federal borrowers.
Recent Posts
How The Supreme Court Could Finally Force Big Oil To Face Trial
February 3, 2023
Take Action Now Dozens of cities and states sued oil giants for deceiving the public. The Supreme Court could soon break these cases out of limbo.…
Bill Fletcher: Keep Fighting Till The Lights Go Out
February 3, 2023
Take Action Now A conversation that touches on internationalism, the expanding political role of Black immigrants, and the need for building…
Iran Blames Israel For Last Week’s Attack On Isfahan Military Site
February 3, 2023
Take Action Now Iran asserted its right to defend itself after the failed drone strikes at the military workshop complex in Isfahan late on Saturday…
Majid Khan Released from Guantánamo After 16 Years
February 2, 2023
Take Action Now Mr. Khan is only the sixth man transferred by the Biden administration and the first resettled in a third country. His transfer marks…