Joe Biden's second attempt at forgiving student loans has been blocked by two judges appointed by Barack Obama.

Two judges in Missouri and Kansas found that pats of Biden's Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) program go beyond his legal authority.

The outcome complicates Biden's narrative about student loans. When Biden was blocked by the Supreme Court last summer, he said the court "misinterpreted the Constitution" and suggested they had done the bidding of Republican "special interests."

But it isn't "special interests" who are the problem. The issue is that Biden can't stop flouting the law.

Biden blocked by Obama judges

Missouri Judge John Ross, an Obama appointee, found that Biden "lacks the requisite congressional authority to forgive loans under the SAVE plan."

Similarly, Judge Daniel Crabtree, of Missouri, found that Biden cannot reduce monthly payments for borrowers with bigger loans and he cannot shorten the period they need to pay to 20 years.

Crabtree left intact a different part of SAVE that allows borrowers with under $12,000 in debt to be forgiven after 10 years of payments.

Both rulings deal a sobering blow to Biden's efforts to deliver on a campaign promise to wipe student debt. Biden has touted SAVE as the most generous income-driven repayment plan ever conceived.

Under SAVE, monthly payments are reduced to 10% of discretionary income for most borrowers and $0 for the poorest borrowers. Starting in July, the plan would have slashed payments further to 5% for most borrowers.

White House sticks to the narrative

The rulings were hailed by Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey and Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach, both Republicans, who brought the challenge against SAVE.

"Only Congress has the power of the purse, not the President," Bailey said. "Today's ruling was a huge win for the rule of law, and for every American who Joe Biden was about to force to pay off someone else's debt."

The administration is vowing to fight on - and continue blaming Republicans for any setbacks.

Biden's press secretary said the administration "strongly" disagrees with the rulings, but she ignored the fact that both judges are Obama appointees.

"President Biden and his administration will continue to build off of the progress made delivering debt cancellation to over 4.75 million Americans through various actions, and we will never stop fighting for students and borrowers - no matter how many roadblocks Republican elected officials and special interests put in our way," White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.