This one is complicated. The Senate just overwhelmingly passed a fix for the student loan problem (the interest rate doubled on July 1st), with only 17 liberals and nutjob Mike Lee of Utah voting against. The White House was pleased and blasted out the following release to the press.
Statement by the President on Student Loans
A better bargain for the middle class means making a college education available to every single American willing to work for it. That’s why I applaud the wide bipartisan majority of Senators who passed a bill to cut rates on nearly all new federal student loans, rolling back a July 1st rate hike and saving undergraduates an average of more than $1,500 on loans they take out this year.
This compromise is a major victory for our nation’s students. It meets the key principles I laid out from the start: it locks in low rates next year, and it doesn’t overcharge students to pay down the deficit. I urge the House to pass this bill so that I can sign it into law right away, and I hope both parties build on this progress by taking even more steps to bring down soaring costs and keep a good education – a cornerstone of what it means to be middle class – within reach for working families.
Is the administration totally full of shit? That’s what Howie Klein thinks. Elizabeth Warren has been railing against this bill all week long.
As best as I understand it, the White House’s statement is true but incomplete. That’s because the law will reduce rates today and pay for it by raising rates later. So, it’s a good deal for people in college today, but bad news for people in middle school.
So, was it a bill worthy of support?
That depends. If your goal was to fix the sudden doubling of interest rates on today’s college students, why not promise the Republicans something they want in exchange for their cooperation? After all, you may be able to change it later, and it’s the only way that they’ll play ball.
But it’s a gamble, because you may not be able to change it later.
