A coalition of 130 Republicans in Congress is calling on the Biden administration to retract a $147 billion student-loan bailout they deem “reckless.” The group, which includes a spectrum of members from Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah to Rep.

Lauren Boebert of Colorado, penned a letter to President Biden’s Education Department urging the cancellation of the bailout. Led by House Education and Workforce Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx of North Carolina and Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee ranking member Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, the lawmakers criticized the bailout’s expansiveness, surpassing even the previous attempt struck down by the US Supreme Court.

The Biden administration is attempting to transfer another $147 billion in student loan debt onto taxpayers. @virginiafoxx and @SenBillCassidy led 129 members in a bicameral letter urging the Department of Education to rescind this newest student loan transfer scheme⤵️ pic.twitter.com/X2ZyC73WJM

— House Committee on Education & the Workforce (@EdWorkforceCmte) May 20, 2024

“This is even broader than the Department’s first attempt: at an estimated price tag of $147 billion, taxpayers are being forced to take on the debt of nearly 28 million borrowers,” wrote the lawmakers. They highlighted the fiscal irresponsibility of the move, labeling it a “backdoor attempt” at enacting ‘free’ college, and accused the administration of leveraging borrowers for political gain despite the clear illegality of such actions.

Senate Republican conference Chairman John Barasso of Wyoming and House GOP conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik of New York also joined as co-signatories.

In June 2023, the Supreme Court invalidated Biden’s $430 billion student loan cancellation bid, arguing it lacked legal grounds despite citing a 2003 law tailored for veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Subsequently, the Education Department has pursued a fragmented approach to alleviate much of the debt under the Higher Education Act of 1965.

However, the Republicans contested

Ohioans: Has #Bidenflation taken enough of your hard-earned money yet?

President Biden doesn't seem to think so – he wants you to take on another $147 billion in student loan handouts. https://t.co/U3sBVjhJXb

— Congressman Max Miller (@RepMaxMiller) May 20, 2024

“The Supreme Court has made it abundantly clear that there is zero authority to write-off federal student loans en masse last June when the Department’s ‘Plan A’ was ruled unconstitutional.

” ‘Plan B’ hinges on creating these extensive regulations based on scant statutory text written in 1965.

“This statute has no history of broad use by any previous Secretary and was previously deemed by this administration as less likely to hold up in court than ‘Plan A,’ ” they added.

President Biden, 81, had promised during his 2020 campaign to forgive portions of federally held student loan debt. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona affirmed the administration’s unwavering commitment to swiftly provide relief to borrowers. In the lead-up to the November election, both the president and Vice President Kamala Harris have toured key swing states to promote their debt cancellation efforts—a move derided by Republicans as a ploy to secure votes.