Political Quotes

“three weeks ago, the Senate passed significant student loan reform. It turns out that for the past several decades, we have been paying banks $6 billion per year to be the middle men in our student loan system. The bill we passed puts a stop to that. Instead of lining the pockets of bankers like Al Lord at Sallie Mae, we will originate all Federal student loans through the Direct Loan Program and we will invest the savings, $68 billion, in education priorities. We put $36 billion into Pell Grants to increase the grant size and tie it to inflation. We also capped monthly student loan payments at 10 percent of discretionary income to help ease repayment for students in public service careers. We invested in historically black colleges and universities, minority serving institutions, community colleges, and state-based college access programs that help students succeed in college. These reforms are essential in helping students afford a college education. Today, along with Senator Franken and Senator Whitehouse, I am introducing a bill that will take an additional step in restoring fairness in student lending by treating privately issued student loans in bankruptcy the same way other types of private debt are treated. Our bill, the Fairness for Struggling Students Act, will allow borrowers of private student loans to discharge those loans in bankruptcy.”