Political Quotes

“In a couple of hours we will vote on whether to begin debate on our plan to keep loan rates low for students for an additional year. Last month Republican obstruction forced interest rates to double from 3.4 percent to 6 percent for about 7 million college students. If we fail to roll back this increase, those students will each pile on lots of new debt to get a college education. These rates will be particularly harmful to low- and middle-income families that rely on these Federal loans more than anyone else. We have the Pell grants, which go to low-income people, but people who are middle class have to do these loans; schools have become so expensive. States have cut back on the support they give to colleges, so this is a very difficult situation. Students shouldn't suffer because some Senators are standing in the way of that compromise. That is why we have proposed a 1-year extension of last year's 3.4 percent rate. We don't want it to double. The extension will allow us to craft a long-term solution to mounting college debt without harming students in the short term. However, a number of Senators met at my direction this morning at 9 o'clock, and there is progress being made. Maybe we can come up with a compromise. It will be imperfect, like a lot of things that happen legislatively, but it will be a way for us to move forward. The meeting went very well. It was done in Senator Durbin's office. Democrats and Republicans attended that meeting.…”