Reverse the Raid on Student Aid

In February, Congress passed the largest cut ever to student aid, slashing financial assistance programs by $12 billion. Average student loan-takers owe around $17,500, and thanks to the Deficit Reduction Act, they are going to be paying much higher interest rates come July.

College has never been less affordable, and the prospect of taking out loans has never been more daunting. This year, 200,000 young people are passing up college because they can't afford it. How many more futures will be sacrificed next year?

Far fewer, if Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill) and Rep. George Miller (D-CA) can help it. Last week, they introduced the Reverse the Raid on Student Aid Act, which would cut interest rates on college loans in half and save borrowing families an average of $5,600.

The Campaign for America's Future has launched a petition demanding that House Majority Leader John Boehner--the "poster child of the Republican failure on college affordability"-- endorse the Miller-Durbin Bill.

The exorbitant cost of higher education is the great injustice facing America's young. In many parts of Europe, for the cost of my monthly cable bill, students can attend college for a year. We're nowhere near that, but this bill is a critical step towards affordability. Please sign the petition, and let Congress know that its vision of our future is unacceptable.

Comments (11)

1. Wet blanket/Cold water time, Mr Graham-Felsen...

   you REALLY think a petition, which will likely draw LESS signatures than your average "Impeach Bush" petition...

   is going to get Boehner to listen to Durbin and Miller?

   Seriously?

   Posted by Mask at 04/20/2006 @ 1:25pm

2. It is an utter shame that for all the talk of being a super-power, our government is willingly dumbing down our youth. As a child of a teacher, I see how hard it is for teachers. They receive no help from administrators, no resources to supplement the textbooks, and slim to none help from parents. My mother is 62-years old and I still don't know how she teaches. I guess a positive is that she teaches a foreign language(Spanish) and doesn't have to deal with even larger classes(although her average class size is 32 students). You can place blame on the government's war against America's children(it is very real) but blame also goes to the states. They offer no reprieve for the teachers. As a teacher, especially in the state of GA, you are on your own. Forget college. The real battlefield is elementary and highschools. Most of our children today do not and would not make it to college, let alone thrive in it. Despite all I've written, I agree with MASK. The government stopped listening to average, thinking Americans a long time ago. Why should now be any different. Fuck a petition. Just stop voting for morons.

   Posted by k330k at 04/20/2006 @ 1:54pm

3. you REALLY think a petition, which will likely draw LESS signatures than your average "Impeach Bush" petition...

   Posted by MASK 04/20/2006 @ 1:25pm

   Oh, the state of education...you do mean "FEWER", don't you?

   Posted by tjbehrens1 at 04/20/2006 @ 2:07pm

4. Nonbody listens to Durbin.

   Posted by john maasch at 04/20/2006 @ 2:19pm

5. Nobody, sorry,...and for good reason.

   Posted by john maasch at 04/20/2006 @ 2:19pm

6. Yup, Mask. It's much better if everyone just did nothing.

   Posted by Hman23 at 04/20/2006 @ 2:41pm

7. Wet blanket/Cold water time, Mr Graham-Felsen...

   Posted by MASK 04/20/2006 @ 1:25pm | ignore this person

   Mask, that very nicely summarizes your coomments to every post at The Nation.

   Posted by Lillian at 04/20/2006 @ 4:33pm

8. Posted by LILLIAN 04/20/2006 @ 4:33pm | ignore this person

   Sorry, LIL.....

   for ruining the fantasies!

   Posted by Mask at 04/20/2006 @ 4:58pm

9. Sorry, LIL.....

   for ruining the fantasies!

   Posted by MASK 04/20/2006 @ 4:58pm | ignore this person

   What does that mean Mask? Are you under the impression that you are somehow setting everyone straight? That your posts somehow illuminate some greater "reality" that everyone else here is missing and only you can clearly see? I'm pretty sure that very few at The Nation view your comments that way.

   I know it's always more difficult to build up than tear down but occasionally you might want to give it a try. It illustrates that you are attempting to make a contribution beyond the stroking of your own ego.

   Most of Mr. Graham-Felsen's post concerns the Reverse the Raid on Student Aid Act, which seems to be a rather decent idea. Signing the petition is one way to try and get the folks in Congress to support the Miller-Durbin bill.

   Do you agree with the premise of the Miller-Durbin bill? If not, what are it's flaws and how would you improve on the concept. If you do agree with the bill's goal of restoring lower cost student loans, what method would you suggest for drumming up support for the bill that would be more effective than the petition drive?

   Posted by Lillian at 04/20/2006 @ 6:43pm

10. This has been an ongoing campaign of distortions and lies by the Democrats, aided by sites like the Nation.

    Posted by LVLIBERTY1 04/20/2006 @ 9:57pm | ignore this person

    The changes implemented in the student loan do amount to "the biggest cut in the program's history" according to the article published by Knight-Ridder. Yet somehow Leave Liberty morphs that into "This has been an ongoing campaign of distortions and lies by the Democrats, aided by sites like the Nation."

    Also in the article...

    "Five years ago, 6.8 percent sounded pretty good," said Barmak Nassirian, a spokesman for the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers. "The problem is it represents a significant rate hike today."

    Nassirian suggests that students who are carrying loans now "run, not walk" to consolidate them at the 5.3 percent rate before the changes are instituted.

    Funny, Mr. Nassirian's comments don't sound like "an ongoing campaign of distortions and lies by the Democrats".

    Also in the article...

    Parents also would face increased rates if they choose to take out unsubsidized loans for dependent students from the federal government. The current fixed rate of 7.9 percent for such so-called PLUS loans would rise to 8.5 percent under the bill...

    Again, Leave Liberty's comments labeling this as "...much contorting and twisting of facts to stir up the left into a rage..." hardly seem to wash with reality.

    Oh, and BTW, Leave Liberty's math seems to be as out of whack as his logic. The legislation just passed institutes a fixed 6.8% rate...a substantial increase over the old variable rate that was at 5.3%. The proposed legislation cuts that new interest rate in half. Using the "average" loan amount of $17,500 over the maximum repayment period of 10 years (not 5), my loan calculator indicates the reduction in interest rate would save $3,500 over the life of the loan. Oh, and for parents who don't qualify for the federally subsidized loans (that only go to the most economically disadvantaged) the bill would save over $4,500 over the life of the loan.

    "...all the while trusting that they won't investigate or do the math for themselves.

    Posted by LVLIBERTY1 04/20/2006 @ 9:57pm | ignore this person

    Funny, it seems as if Leave Liberty was the one trusting that nobody would investigate the facts and do the math for themselves.

    Posted by Lillian at 04/21/2006 @ 02:36am

11. Posted by LILLIAN 04/20/2006 @ 6:43pm | ignore this person

    Two point LIL...

    1. Reality--This isn't going to go anywhere until after the November elections. Congresspeople don't look at petitions (especially "online" kinds) because, unless they have MILLIONS of signatures (or THOUSANDS from a specific Congress. district), they don't reflect any "mass movement".

    2. The bill itslef sounds great.....IF it had provisions for helping to control the costs of tuitions as well. Otherwise, we're back to the same ol' liberal paradigm of "Let's throw endless buckets of money at something, expect NO accountability or cost-controls, and anybody who isn't in favor of it is 'cold-hearted' and 'greedy'!"

    Posted by Mask at 04/21/2006 @ 09:29am