Maybe Don’t Take Out $200K for Gender Studies
Why Blue-Collar America Shouldn’t Pay for Ivy League Mistakes
There’s nothing confusing about it. You take out a loan. You pay it back. That’s the agreement. That’s what millions of Americans do every day - with their cars, their homes, their businesses. So why is it suddenly controversial when it comes to student loans?
Student loan debt doesn’t vanish. It doesn’t disappear into thin air. It just gets dumped on the backs of taxpayers, people who either paid off their loans the hard way or never had the chance to go to college in the first place.
That’s not fairness. That’s theft.
Only 38% of student loan borrowers are current on their loans. The rest are either in default, behind on payments, or in some sort of forbearance. Nearly 10 million borrowers could soon be in default, that’s almost a quarter of the entire federal loan portfolio.
And we’re not talking about a small tab. Total federal student loan debt now sits at $1.6 trillion. That’s almost equal to the GDP of Australia. And yet, under the Biden administration, Washington kept acting like it was Monopoly money, pushing illegal forgiveness schemes, punting collections down the road, and pretending the debt would just vanish.
U.S. federal student loan debt: ~1.6 trillion USD
Let’s talk about choices.
College is not the only path. It’s not even the best path for everyone. And yet, we’ve created a culture where you’re expected to sign on for $200,000 in debt for a Gender Studies degree you will never use, just because someone told you it’s what “smart” people do.
Here’s a thought: If you’re not ready to pay back a loan for a Gender Studies degree, maybe consider a different path. Go to trade school. Get certified in HVAC, welding, plumbing, nursing, something real. Something that builds. Something you can actually monetize.
The average plumber makes more than the average liberal arts grad, and with far less debt. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics:
According to a 2024 study by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the median annual salary for liberal arts majors five years after graduation is approximately $38,000.
And 40% of student loan borrowers never even finished their degree, but still owe the money.
We don’t need more debt. We need more discipline.
President Trump is absolutely right to say we can’t keep kicking the can down the road. He’s not afraid to tell people the truth. If you borrowed it, you pay it. If you default, the government will collect. It’s called common sense.
That’s adulthood. That’s how every other loan in America works. And it’s time the federal student loan program caught up with reality.
The Treasury Offset Program is coming back. That means the government can and will withhold tax refunds, garnish wages, and even take from federal pensions to collect on defaulted loans. This isn’t theoretical. It’s law and it’s happening May 5.
This is about restoring personal responsibility, financial common sense, and respect for the American taxpayer. We’re $36 trillion in debt. We don’t have the luxury of fantasy economics. And we’re done pretending that “canceling” debt is anything other than a taxpayer-funded bailout.
If you’re serious about your future, make smarter choices. Don’t borrow what you can’t repay. And if you do? Own it.
“You take the loan, you pay the loan. That’s how the real world works.” - President Trump 2024 campaign statement