One of the most cost-effective federal programs in U.S. history, a study by the congressional Joint Economic Committee once found, was the Servicemen s Readjustment Act more popularly known as the GI Bill of Rights. Education is allegedly a major theme of the 2000 presidential race, but neither Vice President Al Gore nor Texas governor George Bush are putting forward much in the way of bold proposals, especially when it comes to widening access to a college education. The proposal Gore touts most loudly is his plan to nearly double tuition-related tax relief. The Vice President is less emphatic about his support for increasing the Pell Grant program, which provides modest tuition support for low-income students. Gore s emphasis on tuition tax breaks like his many other tax break proposals is a direct appeal to the middle and upper class.
Poor people pay little or no federal taxes, and so don t receive the benefits of such programs.
Then if there s anything left over for the poor folks, you throw a few bones in there. Mortenson argues that as a result of such approaches, by the mid-1990s, access to higher education was more unequal than at any time in the last 25 years. Oddly, Bush puts more emphasis on the Pell Grant program. But given the Republican Party s general record on support for education until recently they were calling for eliminating the Education Department entirely education advocates are wary. It shouldn t be necessary to choose between who will be able to afford college the poor or the middle class.