Since August, President Joe Biden, that erstwhile restorer of our norms, has: (1) issued an executive order that he knew full well was illegal; (2) altered that illegal executive order in an attempt to avoid judicial review; and (3) asked the courts to allow him to proceed with his illegal executive order, so that, by the time it is inevitably struck down, the case has been rendered moot.
This week, the courts justly told him to shove it. Yesterday, the Fifth Circuit refused to lift its stay while the case was pending. Here’s Axios:
The Biden administration’s request to halt a Texas judge’s ruling blocking its student debt relief program was denied by a federal appeals court on Wednesday night.
The big picture: The Biden administration has indicated it will appeal the decision of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans to the Supreme Court, per Bloomberg.
Today, the Supreme Court responded to that appeal by blocking the order until oral arguments in February — and possibly well beyond that. Here’s CNN:
The Supreme Court said Thursday that President Joe Biden’s student loan debt forgiveness program will remain blocked for now, but the justices agreed to hear oral arguments in the case in February, with a decision expected by June.
Biden’s program would offer up to $20,000 of debt relief to millions of qualified borrowers, but it has been met with legal challenges since it was announced.
Nearly two weeks ago, the Biden administration began notifying people who are approved for federal student loan relief. About 26 million people had already applied to the program by the time it was frozen prompting the government to stop taking applications. No debt has been canceled thus far.
From the start, this has been an exercise in executive tyranny of precisely the sort that our Constitution was designed to avoid. Thus far, that Constitution has held firm. James Madison, the nation owes you a debt.