Guest Editorial…GOP should put up or shut up on college affordability

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton last week proposed a $350 billion plan aimed at making college more affordable and reducing the crushing burden of student debt.
All should applaud that effort, and any reasonable plan like it, to make the cost of higher education more affordable.
Clinton’s proposal takes steps to reduce the cost of four-year public schools, make two-year community colleges tuition-free and cut student loan interest rates.
What’s there not to like about that, especially if you’re a parent passed out on the floor from the sticker shock of the modern cost of a college education.
National student debt is near $1.3 trillion dollars and the average price for in-state students at public four-year universities is 42 percent higher than it was a decade ago, according to the Associated Press.
OK, so if you say “Hillary Clinton,” you know where the opposition is coming from, right? No pun intended.
GOP leaders are less than thrilled with Clinton’s plan.
“Every time you add more money and financial aid, (traditional colleges) raise their tuition rates,” said Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, a Republican candidate for president, in a broadcast interview this week. “That’s what’s going to happen here again unless they have competition.”
Fellow GOP presidential contender, Jeb Bush said Clinton’s proposal would “raise the cost of college even further and shift the burden to hardworking taxpayers.”
OK. Fair enough. But if they don’t like Clinton’s plan, the question is where is theirs?
It seems the free market is the solution for everything that ails America as far as the GOP is concerned.
Clinton plans to pay for her proposal by capping itemized tax deductions for wealthy families at 28 percent, like those taken by high-income taxpayers for charitable contributions and mortgage interest, the Associated Press said.
Fellow Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders is pushing a plan that would would eliminate tuition and fees for public universities.
His plan to pay for it would be by imposing a tax on transactions by hedge funds, investment houses and other financial institutions.
A similar plan to reduce the soaring cost of college proposed by President Obama has been bottled up in the Republican-controlled Congress.
No one wants to pay higher taxes, but if the hike for those who can well afford it is tied to the greater good, shouldn’t there at least be a discussion in the Congress?
It’s time for the GOP to put up or shut up to help struggling students and parents afford college.
https://www.phillytrib.com/commentary/gop-should-put-up-or-shut-up-on-college-affordability/article_68ae84c3-de68-56ef-beb5-3613f9b250d5.html