President Biden

The East Room of the White House was still buzzing with applause after President Biden entered the storied reception hall Tuesday afternoon with the NCAA men’s basketball champions from the University of Connecticut. 

What is happening today in America “is not normal.” That was the gist of President Biden’s prime-time speech Thursday delivered in front of Philadelphia’s Independence Hall, where the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution were both drafted.

In recent weeks, student loans and other higher education programs have been the focus of multiple initiatives. On April 6, President Biden extended the current pause on federal loan repayment through Aug. 31. That announcement had obvious appeal to the 44 million consumers who together owe an estimated $1.7 trillion. 

President Joe Biden gave his first address to a joint session of Congress on April 28, promising billions of dollars for infrastructure improvements and education support as well as immigration and civil rights reforms. The president’s proposed initiatives received mixed reactions from community leaders in Massachusetts, who are counting on federal aid to fund projects that are essential to COVID-19 recovery.