Posted on 07/01/2026 12:23:09 PM PDT by DFG
Two federal judges on Tuesday blocked the Trump administration from implementing new restrictions on a student loan forgiveness program that would have barred public service workers from receiving debt relief if their employers are deemed to have a “substantial illegal purpose.”
The rulings, issued by Biden-appointed judges in Massachusetts and Washington, D.C., came just one day before the new eligibility rules were set to take effect.
The Trump administration had sought to add new rules to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program as part of its targeted overhaul of government programs that do not align with the administration’s priorities.
More than 20 states, along with a coalition of nonprofit groups, challenged the rule in a pair of lawsuits, arguing it would allow the Department of Education to target organizations that support causes considered disfavorable to the administration, including transgender healthcare and immigration advocacy.
In Massachusetts, U.S. District Judge Myong Joun struck down the changes, finding the agency lacked legal authority and could potentially violate the First Amendment, as well as threaten to force the administration’s viewpoints on employers.
“The Department cannot create new criminal prohibitions through rulemaking,” Joun wrote in his opinion, adding: “Indeed, the record further demonstrates that the Final Rule has already chilled protected speech.”
U.S. District Judge Amir Ali in Washington, D.C., separately struck down the rule in a case brought on by four nonprofits that advocate for immigration rights, among other issues.
Under Secretary of Education Nicholas Kent said the agency is evaluating next steps for its “commonsense policy.”
“The Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program is intended to support Americans who serve the public good, not to subsidize organizations that engage in terrorism, facilitate illegal immigration, or support the mutilation of children,” he said in a statement.
Congress established the PSLF in 2007 to encourage college graduates to pursue careers in public service by forgiving their federal student loans after 10 years of qualifying employment in the field. More than 1 million Americans have had their loans canceled as a result.
The Trump administration has argued the program is being exploited by organizations to undermine American values and national security.
In an executive order last year, President Trump directed the education secretary to narrow the program’s eligibility and exclude groups that engaged in activities deemed illicit.
The Education Department’s final rule defined those activities to include aiding illegal immigration, supporting terrorism and trafficking, and facilitating the “chemical and surgical castration or mutilation of children.”
The rulings leave the existing PSLF program intact for now and mark more legal setbacks for the Trump administration as it seeks to reshape federal student loan policy.
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FOREIGN BORN JUDGES RULING US ! STOPTHIS CRAP,
We need to proceed as if the system were completely broken, because it is.
RE:Judges Amir Ali and Myong Joun.
...issued by Biden-appointed judges...
Golllllly. You don’t say? Does anybody see a pattern here?
Why not just END the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program?
Stop student loan “forgiveness” across the board for everybody. That makes it fair to everyone with student debt, and to every taxpayer.
“FOREIGN BORN JUDGES RULING US! STOP THIS CRAP.”
Agreed.
U.S. District Judge Amir Ali was born in 1985 in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, to Egyptian-Canadian parents.
U.S. District Judge Myong Jin Joun was born in 1971 in South Korea.
I made the observation on another thread that as much as some people seem to hate Donald Trump, as a conservative (a real conservative) people should take notice that most of the cases behind his actions that have gone to the Supreme Court have been upheld.
He is obviously working in the right direction in my interest as a conservative. Sure, he has had a couple of setbacks recently, but without Donald Trump, pushing these things, would they have made it to the Supreme Court for consideration, even if the court has proven to be completely untrustworthy?
Judge Amir Ali was born to Egyptian-Canadian parents in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Graduated from Harvard Law in 2011.
Judge Myong Joun was born in Seoul, South Korea and was an associate judge of the Boston Municipal Court. He was in the US Army and Massachusetts National Guard and worked with the ACLU of Massachusetts.
How is this still a thing? Did Congress ever pass it?
Am curious if they still allow Americans to be Federal Judges.
Law college is hard. Board exam is harder. Americans avoid hardships.
These judges are past tiresome.
Biden lacked the authority to issue forgiveness.
I heard this was in the works during Obama’s first term.
It was common knowledge for students being recruited into NPO.
Sad, but frequently true.
Ignore the judges.
“Why not just END the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program?”
Good idea.
WHy doesn’t Judge Smith or Judge Carpenter, or Judge Wilson, or Judge Tanner, or Judge Jones, or Judge Johnson, or Judge Greene, or Judge White, or Judge Bowen, or Judge Fletcher,or some soimilar judge ever issue a nationwide ruling?
What a sh*t show.
THIS is all part of THE planned takeover, which has been in the works for years. Place anti-Americans in positions to control, (the officers} and open the floodgates at the borders for the foot soldiers, recruit the young in universities and schools to fuel the fire. I don’t think we have any idea what is in store for this country. I do believe it is too late to do much about it.
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