Khanna on Paying for Loan Cancellation: We’ve Had Deficit Reduction and Can Raise Taxes on Those Making over $400K

On Thursday’s broadcast of MSNBC’s “Jose Díaz-Balart Reports,” Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) responded to a question on how President Joe Biden’s student loan cancellation plan will be paid for by stating that there has been deficit reduction and we can raise taxes on people making over $400,000.

Host Lindsey Reiser asked, “[S]ome Republicans are saying that this is going to make inflation even worse, some are even questioning whether the president has legal authority to do this. Congressman, what do you say to people who maybe have doubts about whether a measure like this is fair or that it will be paid for?”

Khanna responded, “First of all, as someone who took out $100,000 in student loans and I paid them back, I understand what hardship many people are going through. Many people who are getting these student loans, by the way, are the first in their families to go to college and they’re coming from working-class families. It’s just not true that this is going to have an inflationary impact. A lot of these loans weren’t being repaid anyway. What this is going to do is making sure people who aren’t able to pay their loans, that their credit isn’t destroyed, they don’t have to go into bankruptcy, that they still can get a job, can buy a house. And the total cost of it, according to Nobel Laureate Joseph Stiglitz, is about $30 billion a year. So, there’s been a lot of exaggeration out there. There was this Penn study done by a Bush appointee. But the facts are that this is not significantly inflationary and it’s going to provide relief for working-class and middle-class families.”

Reiser then followed up, “Congressman, where in the budget are you going to find that $30 billion to pay for it?”

Khanna answered, “Well, we have had $1.7 trillion of deficit reduction. And we, as Democrats, have actually said, let’s have higher taxes on those making over $400,000, let’s reverse the Trump tax cuts. I’d love for all — any Republican who is saying, how are we going to pay for it, I’d love for them to join us in voting to reverse some of the Trump tax cuts.”

Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett