'The Five': Vulnerable Dems bash Biden's student loan handout
'The Five' panelists react to White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre dodging questions on President Biden's student debt handout price tag and Democratic lawmakers' rebuking the plan.
President Biden may not have actually wanted to unilaterally force taxpayers to subsidize white-collar college debt, Brian Kilmeade suggested Thursday on "The Five."
The president would have been more prompt in executing the handout months or even a year ago, the "Fox & Friends" host said.
"The word that got to him was, 'This is a legacy builder – we're going to build a legacy,'" he said, adding the White House probably "wheeled in" liberal presidential historians Michael Beschloss and Jon Meacham to talk Biden into understanding how he will be remembered in history for such an act.
"He knew that this is unfair inherently," Kilmeade added.
President Biden speaks about inflation and supply chain issues in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Kilmeade also pointed to the fact several Democrats in vulnerable seats are expressing criticism over the handout.
Rep. Tim Ryan of Ohio – locked in a close Senate battle with JD Vance – Rep. Chris Pappas of New Hampshire, Jared Golden of Maine and Sharice Davids of Kansas are among those critics.
Kilmeade noted even some Democratic senators like Catherine Cortez-Masto of Nevada and Mike Bennet of Colorado are not on board.
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White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre fields questions from reporters. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
In response to White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre failing to substantively answer questions on Biden's student loan handout during a briefing, co-host Jesse Watters quipped the answers "aren't in her binder."
"She doesn't know," he said. "No one knows and they don't care. And that's the truth."
"She says that experts have told them that it's going to break even now. Experts have not had a good track record in the last couple of years," Watters said.
During the briefing Wednesday, Jean-Pierre nonetheless praised the handout:
"Taken together, the actions the president announced today are not only economically responsible, they will provide real benefits to families," she said.
Biden announced on Wednesday the handout that will wipe away $10,000 of federal student loan debt for some borrowers who make less than $125,000 per year, adding that borrowers who were Pell Grant recipients may receive handouts of up to $20,000.