Biden's education secretary faces potential ethics probe, says House committee.
Secretary Cardona's recent communications have raised 'grave concerns' among committee members.
The House Committee on Education and the Workforce is requesting an investigation into whether Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona breached the Hatch Act by sending an email accusing Republicans of causing the failure of the administration's student loan repayment plan.
On Tuesday, the committee wrote a letter to special counsel Hampton Dellinger regarding a July 2024 email from Cardona that was allegedly sent to "student loan borrowers."
According to Planet Chronicle Digital's review of the email, the education secretary mentioned "Republican elected officials" three times as the cause of obstacles to the Biden administration's student loan repayment initiatives.
The Hatch Act is a federal law that prohibits government officials from using their "official authority or influence for the purpose of interfering with or affecting the result of an election," as stated in the committee's letter. The GOP-led committee claimed Cardona's email was "a message that appears to have been sent to aid the Democrat party and the Biden-Harris administration in the November 2024 elections."
The document was endorsed by Virginia Foxx of North Carolina and Keith Self of Texas.
Several federal courts have ruled in favor of Republican elected officials who are aligned with special interests and are attempting to prevent Americans from obtaining the most affordable student loan repayment plan available – the SAVE (Saving on a Valuable Education Plan).
Cardona stated that the Biden administration will persist in its efforts to provide student debt relief, regardless of how frequently Republican elected officials attempt to impede it.
President Biden and his administration will not cease their efforts to ensure Americans have access to affordable higher education, despite disagreement with Republican elected officials who support special interests and hinder borrowers from obtaining relief on their student loans.
The letter also mentioned a July 19 press release from Cardona's office following a federal appeals court ruling that halted President Biden's student loan debt relief plan. The press release stated, in part, "It's disgraceful that politically motivated lawsuits brought forth by Republican elected officials continue to obstruct lower payments for millions of borrowers."
Efforts to reach the Department of Education for comment were unsuccessful.
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