Wednesday, January 17, 2007

The US House of Representatives is dealing with a procedural vote as I write this, after which they will vote on HR5, the bill to dramatically reduce the interest rate for new student loans.

I'm interested in how many Republicans break from the party to vote for this one. I've been listening in on much of the floor debate on the bill today, enjoying the GOP reps trying to find ways to explain their opposition to this bill. (The bill would cost taxpayers nothing -- the $6 billion of savings to students would come out of various payments and fees to lenders.) Their main objection is that the bill would only save money for college graduates and do nothing for the rising cost to current students. At one point Buck McKeon said that the real problem is the outrageous wasteful spending by colleges on things like new campus centers. I can't picture many middle-class and working-class parents buying those arguments.

After it passes, my understanding is that the Senate will package it with a batch of Ted Kennedy college-cost proposals, so it's a long way from becoming law. Sorry!

Update: Only 71 Republicans dared to vote against, even though the Bush Administration came out against it. Sorry, W.!

1/17/2007 5:19:01 PM by David S. Bernstein | Comments [0] |