A Covid Emergency Surprise

The Senate votes to end the justification for student-loan cancellations

WSJ editorial.

"Politics is full of surprises, even some pleasant ones. On Tuesday 62 Senators, including 12 Democrats, voted to end the Covid national emergency declaration that the Biden Administration is using to justify its student loan write-off.

President Biden declared the pandemic “over” two months ago, but he has yet to lift the national emergency that Donald Trump declared on March 13, 2020. Why not? Probably because his Administration claims the 2003 Heroes Act allows the Education Secretary to waive any financial student aid provision during a national emergency, including the requirement to repay debt.

Continuing the national emergency serves no vital public-health purpose, which may be why 12 Democrats voted for Kansas GOP Sen. Roger Marshall’s resolution terminating it. Seven face re-election in 2024, including Tim Kaine (Va.), Amy Klobuchar (Minn.), Joe Manchin (W. Va.), Chris Murphy (Conn.), Kyrsten Sinema (Ariz.), Jon Tester (Mont.), and Jacky Rosen (Nev.).

Most surprising, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer joined the emergency terminators. Maybe now that he’s won re-election he feels liberated to risk the wrath of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. More likely, he wanted to give cover to Democrats in his caucus who are trying to demonstrate independence from the President. They can’t bet their re-elections on Republicans nominating awful challengers again in 2024, though no doubt many Republicans will try.

The Administration is trying to block consideration of the resolution in the House by threatening a veto. “While COVID-19 is no longer the disruptive threat that it once was and we have made tremendous progress in combating the virus, the virus continues to pose a risk to the American people and our health care system,” the Administration stated. By that justification, the emergency could last forever.

The national emergency is distinct from the public-health emergency, which provides flexibility for healthcare providers and Medicare. Under a March 2020 law, the public-health emergency also increases Medicaid reimbursements to states on condition they don’t kick people off their rolls and limits work requirements for food-stamp recipients.

Last week the Health and Human Services Department indicated it will extend the public-health emergency at least through mid-April. Ending it will be a priority for House Republicans when they return in January assuming they win the majority.

Still, it’s notable that a dozen Senate Democrats repudiated the Biden Administration’s legal justification for its student-loan cancellation. That executive diktat has already suffered two legal setbacks in a week, and the Senate vote won’t make the Administration’s defense in court more persuasive."