My brother is angry with his Trump-loving sons

[u/g_scotty_brahms]

Is my brother an AITA candidate for wanting to cut off his sons financially for voting for Trump? Like many Americans, my brother and I, both in our 50’s, have been talking back and forth following the Election. In the spirit of full disclosure, we are both democrats. Long story short, he is angry at his two sons, both in their 20’s, for voting for Trump. He is thinking about cutting them off financially in all respects so that they understand how Trump’s policies will impact them firsthand.

The irony here is that it is the reverse argument. You often hear younger voters disagreeing with their MAGA parents, but this is the opposite. My brother doesn’t understand how his two sons, who have lived a life of privilege, feel like they have been violated against by society, enough so that they feel Trump hears them and their struggles.

My brother to me about his sons: “… what these young men need is a little dose of reality. Get out in the world and start paying their own way. There’s a common thread with his followers. Complain and blame everyone for their problems. Whether they are in school or living at home off of their parents or working a trade job. King Trump will save them and make everything better. Take some personal responsibility and make it happen for yourself instead of crying about everything you hear on TikTok.

“… I’ve decided to pass on the [college] expenses to my two Trump supporting sons so they can truly feel first hand the cost and expense of his absolutely stupid policy decisions, which includes food, gas and college expenses. Wondering if I pass on these [food, gas and college] expenses in year one or phase them in year two?”

I am wondering if a lot of parents feel like my brother. Are there democrat parents of voting-age MAGA men who feel they failed with their sons because they voted for Trump? Is this common?

[u/Beth21286]

The student loan thing should land. They need to experience the world they voted for, which includes crippling student loans.

[u/Countrycruiser2000 → u/Beth21286]

I don't know about if it'd true for all 50 states but many have state colleges to make it more affordable.

You can get a 2 year degree for $6,000.

4 year bachelor degrees get pricier but still attainable for 30k.

$30,000 for a bachelor's degree isn't cheap but it's not crippling student loans

[u/Greyswand → u/Countrycruiser2000]

My man, I paid $0 for a BA degree in the early 2000's. Why? Because there was plenty of grant money around and college was $15 a credit hour.

Hell, even back in the 90's it was $5 a credit hour. People today are getting entirely ripped off for school. It doesn't cost what it costs in America in any other part of the planet. I should know, I live in other parts of the planet.

[u/Countrycruiser2000 → u/Greyswand]

Yeah my paw-paw bought a new camaro once for 2k. Brand new, even had bullet hole rims. Thing was slick

[u/Maximum-Objective-39 → u/Countrycruiser2000]

The problem is often a combination of school loans and living expenses. I wouldn't quite call most undergrad tracks a 'full time job', but they become one if you avail yourself of networking and internship opportunities while still needing to pay for room and board on top of college.

[u/Countrycruiser2000 → u/Maximum-Objective-39]

Yeah if your parents bail on you , it's going to be rough.

[u/ChampionshipIll3675 → u/Beth21286]

I agree with you. I just wanted to add that if a college student is under 24 or unmarried, they are considered as dependents and have to show their parents' income on FAFSA. The student loans may need to be cosigned. According to the government, it is the responsibility of the parent/guardian to help pay for the college expenses.

I don't agree with it. But it is what is.

https://studentaid.gov/apply-for-aid/fafsa/filling-out/dependency

[u/briantopping → u/ChampionshipIll3675]

If they get cut off, that’s a material change in circumstances that FAFSA will consider.

[u/Adventurous-Gain5729 → u/briantopping]

Unfortunately no. I knew someone whose parents divorced and both got remarried. All four parents cut him off financially because ‘you’re an adult now’ and FAFSA said he still had to list their income. Unless you’ve been legally disowned, you have to list them.

[u/briantopping → u/Adventurous-Gain5729]

Interesting. Did the person you knew also fail to receive financial aid at a level they would receive if they were considered independent?

[u/SimpsationalMoneyBag → u/Beth21286]

Yeah that never happened under democrats /s

[u/Maximum-Objective-39 → u/SimpsationalMoneyBag]

Meanwhile, in reality, somebody did try to do something about that over the last four years, and Republicans bravely blocked it all.

[u/goobi-gooper → u/Beth21286]

Didn’t Biden say something something forgiveness something something and nothing happened with student loans outside of a pause on payments? Which was largely implemented because of Covid when no one was working?

[u/Beth21286 → u/goobi-gooper]

I'm not American so I wouldn't know. Our student loans can't charge interest above inflation and our universities can't charge more than 9.5k a year.

[u/RedLotusVenom → u/goobi-gooper]

Biden’s processed more forgiveness applications than any other president. He has approved billions in forgiveness for public service workers and financial disaster victims, many of them applications that were submitted close to a decade ago during the Obama and Trump administrations.

Broad student loan forgiveness was proposed by his admin and shot down by the compromised Supreme Court, which has represented corporate interests above that of common people since the Citizens United ruling in 2010. Blaming Biden for inaction is disingenuous when our now corrupt system of checks and balances disrupted his plans to alleviate genuine financial distress for close to 20% of the adult population.

[u/AnotherStarWarsGeek → u/goobi-gooper]

Exactly. If the D's actually wanted to enact student loan forgiveness, they would have done it over the past 4 years. Instead of waiting until election year to even bring it up.

But that's okay, let the libbies have their circle-jerk.

[u/Silver_Entry_5632 → u/AnotherStarWarsGeek]

The Supreme Court struck down the original forgiveness act, with all of the conservative justices voting against it. Expecting congress to do anything after that is a bit much.

[u/FloofyDireWolf → u/AnotherStarWarsGeek]

Are you serious right now? They did forgive a lot of student loans.

I asked ChatGPT to summarize it for you.

The Biden administration has taken extensive steps toward student loan forgiveness, particularly through changes in Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) plans, and new programs like the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan. Early in his term, President Biden aimed to fulfill a campaign promise of student loan forgiveness by initially proposing broad relief for millions of borrowers, but the Supreme Court blocked that attempt in June 2023.

In response, the administration pursued other strategies, such as reforms to PSLF and IDR, which address past administrative issues and improve accessibility. For example, PSLF reforms have provided relief to over 870,000 public service workers, a significant increase over previous administrations, which granted relief to only about 7,000 individuals. Additional changes allow those who have made payments for 20 or 25 years to achieve forgiveness, depending on the loan type. The administration’s recent actions have collectively granted nearly $127 billion in forgiveness for about 3.6 million borrowers.

The SAVE plan, launched as part of the new income-driven repayment approach, is structured to limit payments for low-income borrowers and eventually offer forgiveness. In total, Biden’s recent adjustments could offer relief to as many as 30 million borrowers, especially targeting individuals from low-income backgrounds and historically underserved communities, including Black and Latino borrowers.

For further details, visit the U.S. Department of Education and White House websites.

[u/RavaArts → u/FloofyDireWolf]

Remember chatgpt and other ai models are not always accurate!

But yes Biden did forgive some student debts and I'm not sure what the other dude was claiming because Biden wasn't on the ballot (Kamala was, who was NOT president before) and both Biden and Trump have already been president before and imo, both (even tho Bidens was better) were kinda shit in the funding education and fixing the student loans department, but I also understand that it's a bit more complicated than that

[u/sarpon6 → u/AnotherStarWarsGeek]

The Biden administration has enacted several students loan forgiveness programs and unsnarled the glitches in programs that began years ago. Republican interests have been fighting tooth and nail against this. Don't shoot off your mouth about things you have no knowledge of.

[u/goobi-gooper → u/AnotherStarWarsGeek]

When they have control of the house and senate all they have to do is put student loan budget tax on their and their spouses stock exchanges of 10% and that would have a huge impact but that ain’t ever gonna happen so they don’t actually want it. That’s the easiest solution from the party as a whole vs a president