Top Democratic Presidential Rivals Dispute Free College Tuition for All

The cost of an American college education is skyrocketing. Americans dream about becoming a member of the middle-class. So, what better way to obtain this dream than by grabbing that prestigious college degree. But now the dream has become a nightmare for some. Students are taking out massive student loans to fund their educational pursuits. After college, borrowers are struggling to repay their student loan debts through careers irrespective of their college majors.

The excessive student debt load is hindering Americans from starting their dream careers and opening up private businesses. Instead of buying homes and cars, student borrowers are strapped financially by paying off their student loans. The average borrower pays $3,000 annually towards student loans. According to Sanders, the American economy would experience rapid growth with the elimination of this debt burden.

In 2019, the far left-leaning presidential hopefuls Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren want to make public colleges and universities free for everyone regardless of income. Bernie Sanders would even like to eliminate the nation’s $1.6 trillion student loan debt.

Bernie Sanders

Bernie Sanders based his 2016 presidential bid on making public universities, trade schools, and community colleges tuition-free. Because of this promise, Sanders had large lines of students waiting for hours to get into his political rallies. The promises of free education and free healthcare for all was too hard to resist. Bernie Sanders was asked by the media how he intended to pay for the new proposals. He replied that he would tax Wall Street speculation. In essence, the wealthier Americans who usually invest in the stock market — would carry the burden to pay for additional governmental expenditures.

The Chilean Educational Experiment

For several years, the citizens of Chile clamored their government to make college free for everyone. Previously in Chile, only the well-to-do could afford a college education. This puts low-income youth at a disadvantage. College-aged youth simply lacked the resources to afford higher education in order to move up to the middle-class. The Chilean government decided that education was a right. Thus, a college education would be free for all the citizens of Chile.

However, in time, this predicament proved to be precarious. The Chilean government couldn’t support free higher education for all of its citizens. The taxpayer funds were insufficient to support the program. Now, only low-income students can go to certain public universities. There is a maximum time-limit for the availability of funds, depending on the program of study.

These changes to the educational policies of the Chilean nation led to massive student demonstrations in the streets. Tanks and officers in uniform had to disperse the student-led demonstrations with many students becoming injured.

Pete Buttigieg

Pete Buttigieg, a moderate candidate, recently released his American manifesto, “An Economic Agenda for American Families: Empowering Working and Middle-Class Americans to Thrive.” Buttigieg desires to invest $500 billion to make college affordable for families in the middle and lower-income brackets. Households that earn less than $100,000 annually would not have to pay any college tuition. Families that earn between $100,000- $150,000 per year would have their public college tuition costs reduced. Other high-earning households would be responsible for paying the full price of college tuition.

Pell Grants would still be available to students to pay for housing, transportation, books, and other necessary living expenses. In addition to this, Buttigieg would designate $50 billion for investments in Historical Black Colleges and Universities. Minority students are 16% more likely to graduate from an HBCU than a public university.

Buttigieg has a robust plan to improve the quality of education for Americans and the economy as a whole. However, in his political brief, Buttigieg doesn’t state how he would fund his ambitious agenda.

Elizabeth Warren

Elizabeth Warren proposed to make two-year and four-year public colleges and universities free for tuition and fees. Warren had dropped out of college to marry her sweetheart. She always dreamed of becoming a special needs teacher. So, Warren went back to Houston public university and paid the $50 tuition with her waitressing income. Since public university was so affordable, she eventually became a special needs teacher, a law professor, and a U.S. senator.

In her proposal, Warren seeks to eliminate the student loan debt for 42 million Americans capped at $50,000 per individual up to the maximum household income limit of $250,000. This would eliminate 95% of household student loan debt which would also include private student loans. Warren would pay for the student loan debt elimination program through a millionaires tax plan.

There are no easy answers when it comes to the prosperity of the American student. Howbeit, leading economic analysts believe that the liberal educational agenda would benefit the American economy long term.