- The Supreme Court concluded oral arguments on Biden's student-debt relief on Tuesday.
- Education Sec. Miguel Cardona said Biden's team made a "powerful defense" of the relief.
A consequential day for millions of student-loan borrowers has wrapped up at the nation's highest court, and President Joe Biden's administration is feeling good about it.
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments for the two conservative-backed lawsuits that blocked Biden's plan to cancel up to $20,000 in student debt for federal borrowers. While the liberal justices drilled the lawyers representing the two cases on the standing they have to bring the lawsuit, the conservative justices appeared skeptical of Biden's authority to cancel student debt broadly for millions of Americans without Congressional approval.
Still, Education Secretary Miguel Cardona did not appear to be deterred by the harsh line of questioning, saying Biden's team "mounted a powerful defense before the U.S. Supreme Court on our plan to provide targeted, one-time student debt relief to more than 40 million working- and middle-class Americans as they recover from the pandemic."
"The Department of Justice argued against the lawsuits aimed at denying relief to borrowers, made clear that challengers to the program lack standing to even bring their cases to court, and explained the Department of Education's decades-old authority used by multiple administrations to protect borrowers from the effects of national emergencies," Cardona said.
"President Biden, Vice President Harris, and I recognize how essential this relief is for tens of millions of Americans, and we are fighting to deliver much-needed help to borrowers trying to get back on their feet after the economic crisis caused by the pandemic," he added.
In the hours leading up to arguments, advocates, Democratic lawmakers, and borrowers rallied outside the Supreme Court to voice their support for Biden's plan. Massachusetts Rep. Ayanna Pressley, a vocal leader for debt relief, told Insider that she's so confident in the plan's legality that a backup plan right now isn't necessary.
"I'm not there yet. I'm ceding nothing," Pressley said. "We are still in this. The president has the authority. The Supreme Court needs to apply the letter of the law, and we need to get this done."
The White House has also previously said it's not deliberating any alternative plan for relief right now, maintaining confidence in the plan it has put forth. Now, all eyes turn to the Supreme Court, which is expected to make a final decision on the legality of Biden's plan by June. Student-loan payments will remain on pause for 60 days after the lawsuits are resolved, or 60 days after June 30 — whichever happens first — and Pressley told Insider she will "absolutely" push for payments to remain on pause until borrowers get relief.
"This movement pushed for those pauses," Pressley said. "It's been game-changing and transformative for so many people. By eliminating that bill, I mean, do you all understand that there are people that are paying monthly student loan of bills that are the equivalency of a mortgage?"