OnPolitics: Biden gets a crash course

President Joe Biden's got some studying up to do.

After his first visit as president to Milwaukee, Biden is dealing with the backlash from some of the comments he made on reopening schools and student loan debt forgiveness. 

It's Mabinty, with your hump day guide to the news. 

The school reopening debate isn't going away 

Pour one out for parents. They are frustrated. It's hard to work and homeschool children in the midst of a pandemic. They want to know when they can send kids back to school. 

Prep for the polls: See who is running for president and compare where they stand on key issues in our Voter Guide

President Biden made clear Tuesday night at a CNN town hall that his goal is for most K-8 public schools to be open in-person "five days a week" by the end of his first 100 days.

There has been back and forth about what Biden's target goals were:

• White House press secretary Jen Psaki said last week Biden's goal is for more than 50% of schools to have "some teaching" in person "at least one day a week" – not necessarily fully reopened – by Day 100 of his presidency.
• Then Biden backtracked Tuesday and recommitted to a goal of having most K-8 schools fully open. "I think that we'll be close to that by the end of the first 100 days," Biden said.

This begs the question: Will teachers be vaccinated? USA TODAY White House reporter Joey Garrison tweeted that Psaki says it's not a requirement for school reopenings.

In many states, teachers lobbied to be among the first to be vaccinated after health care workers and nursing home residents. But they also argue the vaccines alone are not enough to open schools. They say other calls for things like enforced mask policies and low community spread have been met unheard.

So about those loans ...

Don't expect total student loan debt forgiveness anytime soon. 

"I will not make that happen," said Biden when asked by a CNN town hall attendee how he would enact a $50,000 student debt forgiveness plan.

Some congressional Democrats have endorsed a student debt forgiveness program that would cancel up to $50,000 in debt for most Americans. Biden did concede that he is "prepared to write off the $10,000 debt but not $50 (thousand), because I don't think I have the authority to do it," said Biden.  

The federal government should not forgive debt for students who went to elite schools like "Harvard and Yale and Penn," the president said.

Progressives are not happy with Biden's comments. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tweeted, "Who cares what school someone went to? Entire generations of working class kids were encouraged to go into more debt under the guise of elitism. This is wrong."

• IRS says all stimulus payments have been distributed, but some checks may still be in the mail

Elsewhere in the politics world: 

• Controversial conservative media titan Rush Limbaugh died at the age of 70, his wife, Kathryn, confirmed. 
• 'We did not send him there to do the right thing': Sen. Pat Toomey faces censure over impeachment vote
• 'Righting wrongs':Reparations to Black Americans for slavery gains renewed attention in Congress
• Biden wants to put a Black woman on the Supreme Court, putting a spotlight on the lack of diversity in lower courts
• Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed al-Maktoum, the daughter of Dubai's ruler, says in a new video she is being held captive by her family
• 'Criminal syndicate with a flag': North Korean intel operatives charged in hacking campaign

Happy Ash Wednesday to those who celebrate. —Mabinty