Political Quotes

“Mr. President, first let me say that I very much appreciate the comments of the Senator from Tennessee and his leadership on this issue. I join him in hoping we will be able to vote for the alternative he has provided, which is a more sensible way to ensure that this increase in student loan interest fees does not continue. Many students who entered college 4 or 5 years ago believing that higher education would improve their prospects for getting a good job are now, sadly, very disappointed. The Obama economy is going to let them down. According to a recent Associated Press story, one out of two recent graduates is either unemployed or underemployed. The article cites a new analysis based on government data which found that young college graduates ``are heavily represented in jobs that require a high school diploma or less . . . that's confounding their hopes a degree would pay off despite higher tuition and mounting student loans.'' At this time, most of us agree that Congress should extend the lower interest rate on certain Stafford loans. Unless we do, interest rates will double to 6.8 percent this July. There are competing proposals to accomplish this extension, as Senator Alexander pointed out. Unfortunately, the majority leader's proposal is going to make the underlying jobs problem worse by burdening job-creating businesses with new taxes and compliance costs. Let me illustrate how this occurs.…”