Tracy Davis, 42, still thinks that voting for President Donald Trump was a good choice.
But she wishes the president would think more carefully about how his actions are affecting student-loan borrowers like herself.
“I did vote for Trump,” Davis told Business Insider. “This was a very big surprise for me. I mean, I was thinking he was going to fix some things, and it didn’t go the way I was seeing it going with student loans.”
Davis is referring to the Trump administration’s move to restart collections on defaulted student loans in early May after a five-year pause. Negative credit reporting for defaulted student loans resumed in October 2024, and Trump’s Education Department announced that collections would resume in an effort to restore accountability to the student-loan system.
“Borrowing money and failing to pay it back isn’t a victimless offense,” Linda McMahon, Trump’s education secretary, wrote in an opinion piece. “Debt doesn’t go away; it gets transferred to others. If borrowers don’t pay their debts to the government, taxpayers do.”
Prior to the pandemic pause, Davis said she was able to make her $150 student-loan payments. However, once the pause lifted, she was billed nearly $400, which she said she could not afford. It caused her to fall behind on payments, and her credit score took a hit after negative credit reporting resumed.
“I think they pulled the trigger a little too fast, especially with hitting the credit report, because we’re not all in the same situation,” Davis said. “I just wish there was more thought put into it.”
Business Insider has heard from dozens of student-loan borrowers who are delinquent or in default on their debt, including some who voted for Trump. Borrowers tend to go into default after 270 days of missed payments.
While many borrowers expressed frustration with the abrupt collections restart and the consequences for defaulting, like negative credit reporting and wage garnishment, some said they recognize the importance of restarting the system and ensuring borrowers pay back their loans.
Ellen Keast, a spokesperson for the Department of Education, previously confirmed to BI that Social Security garnishment for defaulted borrowers is paused: “The Trump Administration is committed to protecting social security recipients who oftentimes rely on a fixed income.”
However, the department still plans to garnish wages for defaulted borrowers later this summer. Davis is concerned that she might be on the receiving end of that policy.
“If you were way behind and you had no intention of paying them back, yes, go after them, garnish wages,” Davis said. “But when you’re trying to make it and you’re trying to honestly make an effort to pay them off, I don’t think that’s right that we’re getting wages garnished or credit hits.”
‘Buyer’s remorse’
Miranda Metheny, 37, is in default on her student loans — and she’s rethinking the vote she cast for Trump.
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“I’m having a bit of buyer’s remorse,” Metheny said. “Now, seeing what all is taking place, I’m like, maybe I just shouldn’t have voted.”
Metheny is unable to work due to a disability, and she can’t afford to dig into the $600 monthly disability insurance to pay off her student loans while also helping support her two children.
“We already don’t make enough to really even survive at this point,” Metheny said. “We’re all robbing Peter to pay Paul, and now you’re going to cut into that? I worry about people that are already hurting.”
The Department of Education estimated that 5 million borrowers are currently in default. Recent data from the New York Federal Reserve showed that millions more could enter default this summer; since negative credit reporting resumed in the fall, 8.04% of balances moved into serious delinquency in the first quarter of 2025.
While some higher education analysts previously told BI that the surge in delinquency was expected, many borrowers are at risk of defaulting because they might not be aware of their payment status and are unprepared to afford an extra monthly bill.
Some student-loan borrowers at risk of default said they still support Trump’s move to collect on defaulted student loans. Cheri, 67, said that she voted for Trump and supports his stance that loans should be paid back. She hasn’t made any payments on her loans since the pandemic pause, though, and she said she’s not financially prepared to shoulder another monthly bill.
“I’m not going to bash the Trump administration. But that being said, I think that turning people over to collections is a very drastic move after what we just went through over the past four years,” Cheri said. “I’m opposed to that.”
Aside from collections on defaulted student loans, the Trump administration is urging Congress to pass the president’s big spending bill. The version of the bill that passed the House would condense existing income-driven repayment plans into two plans that have longer repayment periods. McMahon wrote in a June 11 post on X that the bill “will prevent future Democrat administrations from illegally transferring student loan debt to American taxpayers.”
Former President Joe Biden’s SAVE plan — an income-driven repayment plan that would have allowed for cheaper monthly payments — is also blocked in court, leaving borrowers with fewer repayment options.
As far as default consequences go, Sen. Elizabeth Warren said that McMahon confirmed in a private meeting on June 10 that Social Security garnishments will remain paused.
“The Education Secretary has assured me that the pause that is currently in place will stay in place and if there is to be any change in that, she would get in touch with me directly before we go there,” Warren said.
Metheny said she hopes that the administration will consider more relief for borrowers.
“We’re not all billionaires,” she said. “We can’t just come up with that amount of money that quickly.”
Are you in default, or concerned about defaulting, on your student loans? Share your story with this reporter at [email protected].
