What is to negotiate? These are federally guaranteed student loans, for the most part (roughly 85% of the $1.3T outstanding, the rest is private, with no recourse to the taxpayer.) The money was disbursed. Paid to the college, the campus bookstore, the apartment landlord, whatever. It's a loan from a lender like, say Wells Fargo. It conforms to the Department of Education requirements, and has a federal guarantee that the lender will be repaid. Does Trump imagine that by personal suasion he is going to get the lender to accept 59 cents when it is presently guaranteed $1? I don't think so. The loans that are outstanding are cast. The only thing that pandering politicians (Obama, in his forgiveness program for public service employees, Hillary in her pronouncements on the trail, and now Trump) are offering is that instead of the borrower repaying the amount owed, the Federal government (read: general revenue taxpayer) will pay some portion. They can argue amongst themselves over the portions, but the point remains that it is entirely unfair to the federal taxpayers, many of whom never went to college, to be tasked, retrospectively, with this burden. Education is, for most people, enhancement of personal capital. It is portable and follows you where you go, within a career, geographically, etc. It is nearly the antithesis of a public good.
I realize it may be a bit late to argue this point, since we have long since slid down the slope to free everything, for everyone. I just think it is sad to see Trump getting on the bandwagon. It seems a strategic mistake - for every student debt laden millennial he might gain the vote of, he probably loses 2-3 among conservative voters who can see where the free money comes from.
Does Trump imagine that by personal suasion he is going to get the lender to accept 59 cents when it is presently guaranteed $1?If the alternative is getting nothing? Yeah, I think he could pull it off. Of course there are all kinds of dirty tricks the lenders can pull, but in the end the sovereign trumps (ha!) the banks, especially when he has the people on his side.