Comment by didgetmaster

Money is fungible. Forgiving someone of a $10K or $20K loan is the exact same thing as sending them a check for the same amount. At least some of them will go out and buy a car, boat, RV, or something else that has the same payment as their student loan and feel (rightly) like the government just bought them a new toy. You can pretend that it won't have any effect on inflation, but it will.