Venture capitalist and Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary is no fan of proposals to wipe away debt incurred by college students. Appearing on CNBC’s Squawk Box on Wednesday, O’Leary was asked about the potential of President Joe Biden canceling student debt, something the investor called a “policy born in hell.”

“I’m trying to find merit in this proposed policy, and I can’t. This is policy born in hell,” O’Leary said. “And I’ll tell you why. Nobody wins.”

Education, he continued, is a “right, not a privilege,” something past generations have realized through paying off their student loans.

“What do you tell people, generations past, that have actually paid back their debt?” O’Leary said. “How about the people who are working so hard to get scholarships to excel? What do you tell them? Don’t bother? It’s free.”

The government taking on the financial burden of some or all of college debt for students is a particularly bad idea now, O’Leary argued, as Americans are feeling the squeeze of inflation on gas, groceries, and other expenses.

“You’re telling these people this is a big problem, meanwhile you can’t fill up your car, chicken costs 48 percent more, and this is at the top of the agenda for the president?” the Shark Tank judge said, adding that the focus on student loans is “manna from Heaven” for Republicans ahead of the midterm elections.

The government forgiving student loans is “un-American,” O’Leary, who was born in Canada, added at another point.

“This is crazy. It’s just politically insane. It’s a kamikaze idea,” he said. “Now is the wrong time for this and by the way, there’s never going to be good time for this. This is un-American, and there’s no free money.”

The latest proposal from the White House on student loan forgiveness would shed $10,000 off the bills of borrowers, The Washington Post reported last week.

Politicians like Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) have been behind a growing push to completely eliminate student debt, something Biden has not supported, even when campaigning for the 2020 presidential election where he proposed $10,000 as the amount that should be forgiven.

Additionally, we should forgive a minimum of $10,000/person of federal student loans, as proposed by Senator Warren and colleagues. Young people and other student debt holders bore the brunt of the last crisis. It shouldn’t happen again.

— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) March 22, 2020

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