An amicus brief opposing President Biden’s cancellation of up to $20,000 in student loan debt per borrower cites the hypothetical opinion of deceased actor John Wayne.
“The Duke wouldn’t stand for this, you can be sure of that,” states the brief, filed in the Supreme Court by right-wing advocacy group Americans for Not Too Much Prosperity (ANTMP). “His opinion on student loan forgiveness wouldn’t be much different than his opinion on salads: ‘a bunch of liberal nonsense.’”
It continues: “On screen and off, Mr. Wayne espoused the time-honored American virtues of rugged individualism and unwavering patriotism. He would surely hang his head in shame at this gross display of European socialism and good-intentioned backwardness.”
In a first for the highest court in the land, the brief also included an image: a promotional photograph of Wayne on the set of The Green Berets with a word bubble reading simply, “No.” Court observers have since voiced concern that the break in precedent could result in future briefs basing their arguments around visuals of all sorts, including emojis, memes, and even long-dormant rage comics.
ANTMP founder Carl Couch was evasive when asked about the photograph and why Wayne’s imaginary thoughts on debt relief were included at all.
“Why?” Couch sneered at a reporter who spotted him outside Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s Maryland home. “The brief isn’t the forum to explain it. Neither is this non-monetized interview. You’ll just have to wait until next week, as I’ve arranged for a junior associate to discuss it on Ted Cruz’s podcast.”
