MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 11th November, 2022) The Texas Northern District Court has blocked US President Joe Biden's student debt relief program worth over $400 billion, but the White House intends to appeal the decision.
According to the Biden administration, 16 million out of 26 million US citizens who applied for the student debt relief program have already been approved for relief.
In this particular case, two plaintiffs who did not qualify for the program appealed to the court to question whether the US Congress has authorized the White House to implement the program.
"In this country, we are not ruled by an all-powerful executive with a pen and a phone. Instead, we are ruled by a Constitution that provides for three distinct and independent branches of government," the court said in a statement.
US District Judge Mark Pittman emphasized that Biden's administration lacks clear congressional authorization for the program.
"The Court DECLARES UNLAWFUL and VACATES the Program," the statement read.
White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said that the administration strongly disagrees with the court's ruling and that the US Department of Justice has filed an appeal.
