The Supreme Court's conservative chief justice cited Nancy Pelosi in his opinion striking down Biden's student loan forgiveness program
Alex Wong/Getty Images; Jemal Countess/Getty Images for TIME.
- The Supreme Court struck down Biden's student loan forgiveness plan in a 6-3 decision on Friday.
- Conservative Chief Justice John Roberts cited comments by ex-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
- "People think that [the President] has the power for debt forgiveness," she said in 2021. "He does not."
In a 6-3 decision authored by conservative Chief Justice John Roberts, the Supreme Court on Friday struck down President Joe Biden's student debt forgiveness plan.
And in doing so, he cited someone you wouldn't necessarily expect: former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Roberts cited comments she made during a press conference with reporters on July 28, 2021, when she argued that Biden didn't have the power to enact the forgiveness program on his own.
"People think that the President of the United States has the power for debt forgiveness. He does not," she said at the time. "He can postpone. He can delay. But he does not have that power. That has to be an act of Congress."
The former speaker later supported Biden's plan when he announced it in August 2022, calling it a "bold action" and a "strong step in Democrats' fight to expand access to higher education."
—Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) August 24, 2022
A spokesperson for Pelosi did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.