Bush (finally) signs student aid bill

[AlethiaSi]

http://www.time.com/time/politics/ar...rss-topstories

WASHINGTON) — President Bush on Thursday signed legislation designed to make college more affordable for students from poor and middle-class families, swallowing objections to a bill that enjoyed veto-proof majorities in Congress.
April may indeed be the cruelest month. Families of college-bound students go hunting for financial ...





The new law achieves a goal Bush shares with lawmakers: boosting aid for needy students. The action allows both the Bush administration and Congress to say they have done something to ease the burden of paying for college, a popular political priority.
"I have the honor of signing a bill that will help millions of low-income Americans earn a college-degree," Bush said in a ceremony, with lawmakers and students by his side.
The legislation boosts the maximum Pell grant, which goes to the poorest college students, from $4,310 a year to $5,400 a year by 2012.
It also cuts in half the interest rates on federally backed student loans — from 6.8 percent to 3.4 percent — over the next four years.
The increase in financial aid is designed to come from cuts in subsidies that the government makes to banks, totaling roughly $20 billion.
The boost in financial aid to college students was one of a half-dozen domestic priorities Democrats set when they took control of Congress this year.
Bush at one point threatened to veto the bill on grounds that it included hidden costs and was an expensive expansion of federal programs. Yet he went along, despite what his administration calls budget "gimmicks" in the legislation, mainly because of the increased aid for poor students, one of his longtime priorities.
Congress overwhelmingly backed a compromise version of the student-aid bill earlier this month. The House approved it 292-97; the Senate vote was 79-12. All the lawmakers who voted against the bill were Republicans.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washing...lege-aid_N.htm

http://fe39.news.sp1.yahoo.com/s/ap/..._go_pr_wh/bush

I heard about this on NPR, I *think*/ this *appears* to be a good thing..... thoughts???? Does anyone know more about it??

[Kevin]

I never understood how anyone could be against student loans. It's one of the few federal entitlements where the government is likely to see a return on its investment.

[AlethiaSi]

Originally Posted by Kevin

I never understood how anyone could be against student loans. It's one of the few federal entitlements where the government is likely to see a return on its investment.

I don't see why either. It is the only way I got through school, and hopefully through graduate school... I don't see why higher education for more people is a bad thing, why would someone vote against that?
I don't know much about the bill specifics, hopefully this really does benefit students.

[Rudey]

Originally Posted by AlethiaSi

I don't see why either. It is the only way I got through school, and hopefully through graduate school... I don't see why higher education for more people is a bad thing, why would someone vote against that?
I don't know much about the bill specifics, hopefully this really does benefit students.

Read the objections. The way it works is that the government essentially subsidizes private companies to issue loans. Some may call this corruption. Some label it as a way to keep the government from getting bloated. I'd err with the first since Bush doesn't give a crap about big government.

-Rudey

[Kevin]

Originally Posted by Rudey

Read the objections. The way it works is that the government essentially subsidizes private companies to issue loans. Some may call this corruption. Some label it as a way to keep the government from getting bloated. I'd err with the first since Bush doesn't give a crap about big government.

-Rudey

I can agree with that. The government pays a much lower rate on the money it borrows. I don't see why the government can't be in the business of loaning money to students.

I guess that's what banks get for supporting our Republican form of government.

[Drolefille]

Wooo hooo for lower interest rates.

(Loans suck )