Warren Would Bypass Congress on Debt Cancellation

Senator Elizabeth Warren, the Massachusetts Democrat who is vying for her party's presidential nomination, last year rolled out a $1.25 trillion student loan debt cancellation plan. Her proposal would offer up to $50,000 in loan forgiveness to borrowers with annual household incomes of up to $100,000. For borrowers with higher incomes, the cancellation amount would decrease, topping out for those earning $250,000 or more.

Senator Bernie Sanders, the Vermont Independent who also is seeking the Democratic presidential nomination, said he would cancel all student debt.

Warren's campaign on Tuesday said that as president, she would bypass the U.S. Congress to enact her debt cancellation proposal.

"I will start to use existing laws on day one of my presidency to implement my student loan debt cancellation plan that offers relief to 42 million Americans -- in addition to using all available tools to address racial disparities in higher education, crack down on for-profit institutions and eliminate predatory lending," she said in a written statement.

Warren would be within her legal authority as president to unilaterally cancel student debt, according to an analysis by experts with the Project on Predatory Student Lending at the Legal Services Center of Harvard Law School.