STUDENT LOAN cancellations were announced on Friday (Shutterstock).

Over 200,000 borrowers of student college loans will be cancelled, the federal Department of Education announced on Friday.

Under the new policy – called the SAVE Plan – borrowers will become eligible for loan cancellation as they hit 10 years of payments. That’s 10 years earlier than with past student loan relief programs.

The program is facing a challenge from Kansas and Missouri which are challenging the authority of the Biden administration to create the program without the consent of Congress.

Cancellations are expected to be approved eventually for about 360,00 people who have outstanding student loans, worth about $7.4 billion. Some political observers believe that Biden’s efforts to confront student debt are part of an effort to woo young voters.

Tough week for Wall Street

A report this week that inflation was stronger than expected, along with uncertainly about the situation in the Mideast has sent Wall Street into a funk.

When the bells rang on Friday, the bellwether S&P 500 dropped by 1.5 percent with an overall weekly decline of 1.6 percent.

Also showing declines were the Nasdaq Composite and the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which is down 990.79 points, a drop of 2.54 percent.

Six fatally stabbed in Sydney

SIX PEOPLE were fatally stabbed on Saturday in Sydney, Australia (Shutterstock).

Six people were stabbed to death in Sydney, Australia on Saturday morning. Eight others were wounded and the attacker was fatally shot.

The suspect – identified only as a 40-year-old man – killed five women and a man before a police inspector shot him down. The incident took place in a shopping center in the eastern suburbs of the city.

Among the wounded was a 9-month old baby. All the wounded were being treated at a nearby hospital and information about their condition was not immediately available.

The incident was not believed to be an act of terrorism.

White House race is closer than ever

The upcoming presidential election between President Joe Biden and former president Donald Trump is closer than ever, according to recent polling.

In the Siena College/New York Times poll released Friday, Trump was leading 46-45 percent, well within the margin of error. But in the Reuters poll of registered voters, Biden was ahead 41-37 percent. 

An average of recent polls had Trump up by 1 percent, but the last eight polls show Biden gaining ground or passing Trump since the State of the Union address.

Weather: Rain is on the way

Get your umbrella up and your waterproof shoes on. The forecast for our West Orange County is for rain on Saturday and Sunday. The  daytime high on Saturday will be 62 with an overnight low of 49; Sunday looks like 62 (50). Monday should have partly cloudy skies with a high of 66 (50), but sunny conditions will return on Tuesday with a high of 74 (54).