President Bill Clinton took his education agenda to college students today, defending threatened federal financial aid programs and the Americorps national service program before 110 college newspaper editors gathered at the White House. We need to bear down and do more, not ease up and go back. Clinton announced yesterday that he would carry his message to younger American voters in three spring commencement speeches at Michigan State University, The U.S. Air Force Academy, and Dartmouth College. Upon hearing of Clinton's new plans, Republicans on campus doubted the President's new tactic would work, but said Clinton had to find an alternative after two faltering years.
Voter turnout is lowest for our age group.
Congressional Republicans from the Connecticut delegation did not return phone calls yesterday. The House of Representatives spent the day on the floor debating the welfare reform bill introduced as part of the Contract for America. I don't think that's going to deny anybody an opportunity to go to school at all. But education experts at the Department of Education warn that eliminating the subsidy could force college students to pay 20 to 48 percent more. Clinton maintains that an expansion of the new direct lending program, which allows students to take out lower-interest loans directly from the federal government, could save that figure because it would eliminate the almost 7,000 banks which received commissions under the old federal lending programs.