The Labor Committee was required to meet its targets. Having done so, the Senate is not required to stick to the Labor Committee's proposals. Our objective with this bill was to balance the budget by 2002. The cost of the Kassebaum amendment would not be more than the surplus in 2002. Thus, the Kassebaum amendment would not unbalance the budget.
Republicans believe in investing in education.
No more meritorious use could be found for the surplus in this bill than to spend it on education. This bill will already increase the number of student loans from 6.6 million loans this year to 7.1 million loans next year and it will increase funding for student loans by nearly 50 percent over the next 7 years. Coupled with Republican proposals to increase the maximum Pell grant, to fund fully college work-study programs at the current level, to fund fully supplemental education opportunity grants at the current level, to fund fully TRIO programs at the current level, to fund fully historically black colleges at the current level, and to fund Perkins loans capital contributions at a level sufficient to maintain the current loan volume, it is obvious that our colleagues' claims that Republicans are out to destroy education are nothing but partisan cant. The Kennedy amendment, in sum, is a partisan stunt. Those Senators who are really interested in helping more students get a college education should join us in defeating this amendment and in voting in favor of the Kassebaum amendment to follow.