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Biden Taking Heat Over Student Debt Relief Promise

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Biden Taking Heat Over Student Loans Debt Relief Promise

President Joe Biden touted his plan to cancel billions of dollars in student debt in the days and weeks leading up to the midterm elections as he rallied young people to support Democrats.

However, the entire initiative is now in jeopardy due to legal challenges that could mean no one receives a single dollar of debt relief. The saga is quickly becoming a headache for the administration rather than an example of how the president keeps his promises to voters.

Even though two federal courts have blocked the program’s implementation, the White House remains confident that it will prevail. However, the setbacks have alarmed supporters, who are concerned that more than 40 million Americans who expected relief will instead be billed for their student debt in January when a pandemic-era payment moratorium is set to expire.

“You can’t ask people to start repaying on a debt that shouldn’t exist,” said Melissa Byrne, a loan cancellation advocate. “We bear no responsibility for this broken system.”

The impasse has put the White House in a bind over whether to extend the moratorium if the legal battle drags on, even though Biden has stated that the pandemic, which was the original reason for the payment pause, “is over.”

Student loan

Student Loan Plan Nightmare

According to the Government Accountability Office, the freeze has already cost the federal government more than $100 billion in lost revenue. Critics such as the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget are concerned that another extension will worsen inflation and increase the risk of a recession.

Republicans oppose the cancellation as an unfair handout to the wealthy, arguing that Americans who did not attend college will also bear the cost. Conservatives have launched a legal barrage against Biden’s student loan plan, claiming it exceeds the president’s authority.

Meanwhile, borrowers across the country are once again facing uncertainty. Biden’s plan would cancel $10,000 in student loan debt for those earning less than $125,000 or households earning less than $250,000. An estimated 20 million people were eligible to have their federal student debt cancelled entirely. Those who receive Pell Grants, typically given to those with lower incomes, would be eligible for an additional $10,000 in debt forgiveness.

Now, it’s unclear whether borrowers will be expected to make debt payments when the pause ends, and the political risks are increasing. Support from 43 million borrowers who have been promised at least some debt relief is at stake, including millions of younger Americans, a demographic that helped Democrats won key victories last week.

student loans

Anger directed at the Biden administration

Adwoa Asante, eligible for a $20,000 cancellation, stated that her payments would be “destabilizing” if they resumed in January. The Dallas lawyer, 33, owes $163,000 in law school debt, with monthly bills of up to $2,000.

Asante supported Biden but criticized him for reaping the benefits of his plan during the midterm elections while leaving borrowers out in the cold.

“To be honest, there’s a lot of anger directed at the Biden administration.” “I think they expected legal challenges to the student loan cancellation,” she said, calling the court challenges “to be expected.”

Cedric Richmond, a former White House official now a senior adviser to the Democratic National Committee, believes Biden will face no political consequences if the program is ultimately blocked.

If the program is eventually halted, “the blowback should go exactly where it deserves, and that’s with this rogue Supreme Court,” he said.

According to an AP VoteCast poll of more than 94,000 voters, roughly 6 in 10 voters under 45 approve of Biden’s handling of student debt. Voters were nearly evenly divided on the issue, with Democrats far more likely to approve than Republicans.

Studen loan

The legality of mass student loan forgiveness

Out of an estimated 43 million eligible people, nearly 26 million have already applied for debt relief. The Education Department ceased accepting new applications on Friday after a federal judge in Texas ruled against the plan.

On November 3, in New Mexico, Biden stated that he was on solid legal ground.

“We’re going to court,” he explained. We’re not going to let them get away with it.”

According to advocates, many borrowers will likely default on their student loans without the promised relief. According to a report released Tuesday, nearly half of borrowers polled by the Student Debt Crisis Center believe they cannot afford student debt payments within six months.

“Borrowers do not believe the pandemic is over, nor do they believe the economic consequences are over,” said Natalia Abrams, president of the centre. “We must put payments on hold until all legal issues are resolved.”

From the start, the legality of mass student debt forgiveness was questioned. After being elected, Biden stated that it would be preferable if the legislation came from Congress. Soon before leaving office, the Trump administration issued a memo concluding that the White House lacks broad cancellation authority.

student loans

White House erred in its Legal Reasoning.

Supporters believe Biden’s plan will survive, despite predictions that it will be heard by a Supreme Court that has shifted to the right and limited Biden’s authority in other cases. They claim that the Higher Education Act, a massive federal statute, already gives the president broad authority to cancel federal student debt.

Some groups believe Biden should use other legal means to fulfill his promise. The Debt Collective, a borrowers’ union, urges Biden to cancel debt immediately by invoking the Higher Education Act, the same legal authority first suggested by supporters such as Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren.

“He has an ace up his sleeve that he hasn’t used,” said Braxton Brewington, a collective spokesperson. “The Biden administration should avoid these lawsuits entirely.”

Some legal experts believe Biden should abandon his current strategy and start over. Jed Shugerman, a law professor at New York’s Fordham University, believes the White House erred in its legal reasoning.

“The Biden administration has run into predictable trouble,” he said. “They should start from scratch.”

Even though it would take time, Shugerman believes waiting for a Supreme Court decision is preferable. He claimed that the White House is “sticking to a sure loser” rather than “changing tracks to something that has a better chance.”

Source: AP, VOR News

Celebrity

Iris Apfel, Fashion Icon Known For Her Eye-Catching Style, Dies At 102

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VOR News

NEW YORK — Iris Apfel, a textile expert, interior designer, and fashion celebrity renowned for her unique style, has died. She was 102.

Lori Sale, Apfel’s business agent, confirmed her death and described her as “extraordinary.” No cause of death was specified. It was also confirmed on her verified Instagram page on Friday, a day after she celebrated her 102nd and a half birthday on Leap Day.

Apfel, born on August 29, 1921, was known for her irreverent, eye-catching costumes that combined haute couture with huge costume jewellery. A traditional Apfel ensemble would include a feather boa, strands of chunky beads, bangles, and a jacket embellished with Native American beadwork.

apfel

Iris Apfel, Fashion Icon Known For Her Eye-Catching Style, Dies At 102

With her large, round, black-rimmed glasses, bright red lipstick, and short white hair, she stood out at every fashion event she attended.

Her style has been the focus of museum exhibits and the documentary film “Iris,” directed by Albert Maysles.

“I’m not pretty, and I’ll never be pretty, but it doesn’t matter,” she commented at one point. “I’ve got something far better. “I have style.”

Apfel achieved late-life stardom on social media, accumulating nearly 3 million followers on Instagram, where her profile reads: “More is more & Less is a bore.” She gained 215,000 TikTok followers as she waxed eloquent about fashion and style and promoted previous collaborations.

“Being stylish and being fashionable are two entirely different things,” she stated in a TikTok video. “You can simply buy your way to being fashionable. I believe you have a natural sense of style. It denotes inventiveness and boldness.”

She never retired, saying “Today” that “I believe retiring at any age is a fate worse than death.” Just because a number appears does not mean you have to stop.

“Working with her was an honour of a lifetime.” “I shall miss her regular calls, always greeted with the usual question: “What have you got for me today?,” Sale said in a statement. “A testament to her voracious drive to work. She was a visionary in every sense of the term. She observed the world through a unique lens equipped with massive, unusual spectacles perched on her nose.”

Apfel was an expert in textiles and ancient fabrics. She and her husband Carl ran Old World Weavers, a textile manufacturing company specializing in restoration work, including projects at the White House for six U.S. residents. Apfel’s celebrity clients included Estee Lauder and Greta Garbo.

apfel

Iris Apfel, Fashion Icon Known For Her Eye-Catching Style, Dies At 102

Apfel’s celebrity skyrocketed in 2005 when the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute in New York City staged a show about her called “Rara Avis,” Latin for “rare bird.” The museum characterized her approach as “both witty and exuberantly idiosyncratic.”

Her individuality is generally seen in her mingling of high and low fashions—Dior haute couture with flea market finds, 19th-century church vestments with Dolce & Gabbana lizard trousers.” According to the museum, her “layered combinations” broke “aesthetic conventions” and “even at their most extreme and baroque” showed a “boldly graphic modernity.”

The Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts, was among several museums nationwide that held a touring version of the display. Apfel later donated hundreds of pieces to the Peabody, including couture gowns, to help them establish what she described as “a fabulous fashion collection.” The Museum of Fashion & Lifestyle, located near Apfel’s winter home in Palm Beach, Florida, also plans a gallery to display artefacts from her collection.

Apfel was born in New York City to Samuel and Sadye Barrel. Her mother owned a store.

apfel

Iris Apfel, Fashion Icon Known For Her Eye-Catching Style, Dies At 102

In her later years, Apfel appeared in advertisements for M.M.A.C. Cosmetics and Kate Spade, contributing to her reputation. She also created a line of accessories and jewellery for Home Shopping Network, worked with H&M on a collection of brightly coloured apparel, jewellery, and shoes that sold out in minutes, launched a makeup line with Ciaté London, an eyeglass collection with Zenni, and collaborated with Ruggable on floor coverings.

In a 2017 interview with APA.P.t the age of 95, she claimed her favourite modern designers were Ralph Rucci, Isabel Toledo, and Naeem Khan, but added, “I have so much, I don’t go looking.” When asked for fashion tips, she replied, “Everyone should find her own way. I’m a strong advocate for individualism. I don’t like trends. If you learn who you are, what you look like, and what you are capable of, you will know what to do.”

She dubbed herself the “accidental icon,” which inspired the title of a book she published in 2018, replete with keepsakes and style ideas. Odes to Apfel abound, ranging from a Barbie in her likeness to T-shirts, eyewear, artwork, and dolls.

Apfel’s husband died in 2015. They had no children.

SOURCE – (AP)

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Fashion

2024: MLB Players Concerned About Uniform’s ‘See-Through’ Pants Ahead Of The New Season

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MLB

Major League Baseball players have encountered an unexpected issue ahead of the new season: a defective outfit.

Players and spectators have previously expressed issues about the new jerseys worn this season, and on Thursday, as spring training games began, MLB Players’ Association (MLBPA) executive director Tony Clark expressed concern over the pants.

“A lot of the rhetoric is confirmation that the trousers are see-through,” Clark stated, according to ESPN. “It’s been a continuing conversation, with each day bringing something new that appears to make less sense than you’d like.

mlb

MLB Players Concerned About Uniform’s ‘See-Through’ Pants Ahead Of The New Season

“Universal concern,” Clark remarked, “is the pant.”

The jerseys for the new uniforms, designed by Nike and manufactured by Fanatics, have already received criticism from fans for seeming cheap, lightweight, and having an unappealing appearance. Meanwhile, a Baltimore Orioles player described the new jerseys as “a knockoff” from TJ Maxx.

“It’s disappointing that we’ve landed in a place where the uniforms are the topic of discussion,” Clark said.

According to a news release, Nike collaborated with over 300 athletes to create a more breathable, lightweight, and stretchy jersey.

mlb

MLB Players Concerned About Uniform’s ‘See-Through’ Pants Ahead Of The New Season

The corporation has yet to react to CNN’s prior request for comment on criticism of the uniforms, and Fanatics has declined to comment.

Players wore them during last season’s All-Star Game, and Nike and MLB reported that they were favourably received.

“They’re designed to be performance wear rather than what’s traditionally worn, so they’ll be different,” MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said of the uniforms.

mlb

MLB Players Concerned About Uniform’s ‘See-Through’ Pants Ahead Of The New Season

“I think after people wear them a little bit, they’re going to be really popular.”

This year’s Opening Day is set for March 28, but the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres will play two regular-season games in Seoul on March 20 and 21, marking the first MLB games in South Korea.

SOURCE – (CNN)

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Business

Nike Is Cutting About 1,700 Jobs

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nike

Nike will lay off approximately 2% of its employees, or almost 1,700 people, as the sportswear titan seeks to save up to $2 billion in expenditures.

“The actions we’re taking put us in a position to right-size our organisation to pursue our most promising growth opportunities,” a Nike (NKE) representative said in a statement Friday. “While these changes will impact approximately 2% of our total workforce, we are grateful for the contributions made by all Nike teammates.”

According to its most recent annual report, the corporation employs around 83,700 individuals globally as of May 31, 2023.

nike

Nike Is Cutting About 1,700 Jobs

Nike lowered its revenue projection and announced cost cuts in December, citing rising fears that consumers worldwide are cutting back on spending. The corporation aimed to save up to $2 billion over the following three years.

Customers are shifting their spending habits, preceding discretionary purchases of things such as pricey trainers and athletic apparel in favour of necessities and experiences like concerts and travel.

Nike Is Cutting About 1,700 Jobs

Nike also faces stiff competition from emerging companies like Hoka and On Cloud.

When presenting the company’s latest financial results in December, Nike finance boss Matt Friend said its gloomier forecast reflected “indications of more cautious consumer behaviour around the world” and “increased macro headwinds in China and Europe.”

Nike Is Cutting About 1,700 Jobs

China, the world’s second-largest economy, is confronting significant hurdles, including dissatisfied customers, a real estate collapse, and decreased exports.

Meanwhile, according to official statistics released Wednesday, Europe narrowly averted a recession in the final three months of 2023, with its economy flatlining. Germany, the region’s largest economy, contracted last year for the first time since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

SOURCE – (CNN)

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