Banks Don’t Belong in the Student Loan Business
Posted in Main Blog (All Posts) on December 19th, 2009 5:31 am by HL
Banks Don’t Belong in the Student Loan Business
Arne Duncan, WSJ
Since I arrived in Washington, I've been looking at every line item in the budget of the U.S. Department of Education with two questions in mind: Is this program helping students learn? And is it a good use of taxpayer money? In the case of the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) program, the answer to both questions is no. Under the current FFEL program, banks make loans to students. While those students remain in school, the federal government pays the interest on their loans; otherwise the interest accrues. Once the borrowers leave school or graduate, the lending agency collects on…
Reid, Thune Tell Tale of 2009
Chuck Raasch, USA Today
Coming into the year, Senate Democratic Leader Reid was heading a new super-majority and brimming with expectations of legislation that would fix the economy, reform health care, boost alternative energy production and clean up the environment.He and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi were partnered with a new president, Barack Obama, who had come in on a landslide and had promised big changes with the help of bigger Democratic majorities in the House and Senate.But Reid ends 2009 knowing that the $787 billion stimulus bill that passed in February did not prevent 10% unemployment. Energy and…
An Anniversary of Sorts
Charles Krauthammer, Washington Post
