Democrat staffer slammed for boasting how Biden wiped his student debt
A Democrat Hill staffer is being dragged online for bragging about having his student debt wiped while making $80,000 per year off taxpayer funding. Benjamin Kamens, the Communications Director for Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio), boasted in a post on X about how President Joe Biden canceled the $8,250 he had outstanding in federal student loans.
'Just got a call to let me know my student debt has been canceled. This is why elections matter. Thanks Joe Biden,' the staffer wrote. MAGA social media personality Gunther Eagleman responded on X: 'You should thank the taxpayers you ungrateful f**k.' 'Imagine posting this unironically,' Donald Trump 's lawyer Jenna Ellis wrote.
As of May, Biden has canceled $6 billion in student debt and has plans to continue with more forgiveness via alternative avenues after the Supreme Court shot down his plan to give relief to most Americans with outstanding federal loans. Biden originally proposed a sweeping plan that would give most Americans with federal loans up to $10,000 in relief and those with Pell Grants up to $20,000 in forgiveness.
The Supreme Court struck down Biden's plan to forgive $400 billion by a vote of 6-3 in June 2023. The conservative justices ruled against liberal justices claiming that the Biden administration overstepped its authority. According to Legistorm, Kamens made a salary of $80,375.02 in 2023 and is on track to make closer to $90,000 this year. As an employee of a U.S. congresswoman, Kamens' salary is paid by taxpayer funds.
Republicans and critics of student loan forgiveness argue that it's not fair for those who did not go to college, never took out federal student loans or those who already paid them off to have to contribute to the benefit for others. Ironically, Kamens' boss Rep. Kaptur has previously spoken out against Biden's plan for widespread student debt forgiveness.
'What about the people who paid off their loans?' Kaptur said in August 2022, shortly after Biden revealed his plans to forgive up to $20,000 in student debt. 'What about the people who didn't rack up that level of debt? What about people who put college on hold?' she questioned. 'What about the systemic problems we have in the student loan program, where you walk into an admissions office at a college and they give you a credit card, and you get the money, and you can spend the money on a car or a vacation or whatever, and then the student doesn't graduate. There's a lot of issues.'
Many on X claim that Kamens' is double dipping by both receiving taxpayer-funded relief for his student loans and getting paid his salary by taxpayers. 'Your tax $ were already paying this DC Staffer's student loans off for him while he works on Capitol Hill. Now, you paid them off completely, whether he works or not,' former Rep. Scott Taylor (R-Va.) posted to X. 'This is why elections matter,' he added.
Steve Guest, a former staffer for Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), wrote: 'Joe Biden is robbing from hardworking plumbers, electricians, and mechanics to pay off the student loans from congressional staffers ahead of schedule.' 'This reflects so poorly on the Dems.' Another X user wrote that his loans were not simply 'canceled.'
'Me and every other hard working taxpayer paid for your education, you deadbeat shill,' they added. 'And many of us (me included) worked our a***s off to pay off our student loans on time. Others of us never went to college or graduate school, but now we covered your lawful debts, you welcher.' 'You should be ashamed about your perfidy, and instead you celebrate it. Disgusting.' Tons of others took to X to share their distaste with Kamens posting about how Biden is to thank for student loan relief.
