Mostly evil but not stupid

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Colin Holtz, Rebuild the Dream" <info@rebuildthedream.com>
Date: Jun 25, 2012 11:35 AM
Subject: Mostly evil but not stupid
To: "Daniel Stafford" <aquarianm@gmail.com>

Daniel, check out this list of ways Senate Republicans have proposed to pay for keeping student loan rates at 3.4%, and see if you can spot the pattern: - Gut a preventative health care program - Limit how many years students are eligible for loans, making college far more expensive for part-time students - Force middle-class federal workers to pay more for their retirement - Scale back the number of folks using Medicaid1 You see it? A generation is drowning in debt for having the audacity to get an education, and these people are only willing to help if they can punch the middle class and poor in the mouth while they're at it. SIGN: "To the Senate GOP: We're on to you. Pass a fair deal that helps everyone." The argument over whether interest rates should stay at a low 3.4% is basically over. We won. Heck, even Mr. 1% himself, Mitt Romney, wants rates to stay low,2 and that guy's basically doing whatever the far right says he should at this point. But it's possible to win the argument and lose the fight. Lower rates means the government earns less in interest. That costs money. And that's where the battle is now -- how to pay for this. Thursday, President Obama spoke to a group of students at the White House and called once again for Congress to act. Democrats have proposed a bunch of perfectly reasonable ideas, including just closing giant tax loopholes for a handful of rich business owners.3 Republicans in Congress, meanwhile, balk at any proposal that asks big banks, the super-rich, or even just regular old millionaires, to pay a damn cent more. These guys are mostly evil, but not completely stupid. If we show that voters know what they're up to, they'll strike a fair deal. And if we can win in the Senate, there's a good chance the House will follow. If at least 50,000 folks add their name, we'll send the signatures to GOP Leader Mitch McConnell's office. Sign now. This shouldn't be hard. We're not asking for loan forgiveness or cheaper tuition (right now). We just don't want them to make things worse. That should be doable -- even by Washington's standards... Days to go, Colin and the rest of the Rebuild the Dream team Sources: 1) "White House Skeptical of GOP Student Loan Proposals," Washington Post - June 5, 2012 2) "Romney Backs Extending Lowered Student Loan Rates," CNN - April 23, 2012 3) "Senator Reid Makes New Offer on Student Loans," Reuters - June 7, 2012

---

Rebuild the Dream is a platform for bottom-up, people-powered innovations to help fix the U.S. economy. You can follow us on Twitter, and like us on Facebook.

Was this email forwarded to you? Click here to add yourself to Rebuild the Dream's email list.

If you don't want to receive emails from us anymore, you can remove yourself from our list by clicking here. We're sorry to see you go, and we'll miss you!