The Supreme Court has put the nail in the coffin for President Biden’s plan to erase college loan debt for millions of students. 

The loan bills have been on pause since early in the coronavirus pandemic, but they are set to restart in October. 

Biden, through executive action, attempted to forgive some federal loans, especially for low-income students.  

What’s next: Biden is expected to announce new initiates to address student loans. 

The decision comes on the heels of the court’s ruling Thursday that gutted affirmative action policies in college admissions that were intended to counter racial disparities on campuses. 

Read more here. 

Gay rights redux: The Supreme Court backed a Christian graphic artist who doesn’t want to make wedding websites for same-sex couples. 

The ruling came in a 6-3 decision based on conservative-liberal lines. 

Colorado state law requires that businesses open to the public provide services without discrimination. 

Though she hasn’t started her wedding website business, web designer Lorie Smith argued that the state law violates her religious rights. Opponents argued that a ruling in her favor would open the floodgates for discrimination based on other factors, such as race, gender and religion. (The Hill) 

Déjà vu: If this case sounds familiar … it was also in Colorado, where a baker refused to make a wedding cake for a same-sex couple, and that case also made it to the High Court. 

The court ruled in that case that the baker wasn’t in the wrong, but it did not weigh in explicitly on the broader argument of free speech, anti-discrimination and religious freedom issues in the law. 

Affirmative action ruling ripples through colleges: The fallout from the Supreme Court’s affirmative action ruling on Thursday is still to be determined, but some are bracing for what comes next. 

“The Court recognized the Constitution guarantees equal treatment for all races, and exceptions to that rule should be rare and fleeting. I do not expect universities to take this decision lightly — [diversity] has become one of the highest (if not the highest) priority at many schools — and I expect universities to look for loopholes and workarounds,” Brian Fitzpatrick, professor of law at Vanderbilt University, told The Hill. 

Some argue it could be a detrimental blow to inclusivity. 

“This is potentially a step toward resegregating college campuses, and thus a problem for all socially aware institutions,” James E. K. Hildreth, president of Meharry Medical College — one of the nation’s four medical historically Black colleges and universities, told The Hill. 

Others say it’s time to roll back racial-based admissions policies. (The Hill)