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Conservatives Attack Student Aid in Stimulus

By Pedro de la Torre - Jan 26th, 2009 at 6:20 pm

Funding for education and student aid is becoming a favorite target of conservative criticism of the economic stimulus plan currently being considered in Congress. For example:

The entire stimulus package will have much less to offer colleges and students (and beneficiaries of many other social programs) if Congressional Republicans have their way. In speeches and television appearances over the weekend, Sen. John McCain of Arizona and Rep. John Boehner of Ohio, both of whom are prominent members of the minority in their respective chambers, criticized the Democrats’ stimulus packages for greatly emphasizing spending that may or may not spark the economy rather than tax breaks that would put money directly into consumers’ and businesses’ pockets.

Boehner specifically singled out aid for education in his criticism. “[P]roviding $300 billion of this package to states - $166 billion in direct aid to the states, another $140 billion in education funding - this is not going to do anything, anything to stimulate our economy, to help the - our ailing economy,” the Ohio Republican said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

Moderates like Sen. Arlen Specter are also in on the nay-saying. He is opposed to increased Pell grant funding because he believes that it would do little to support short-term economic growth. Conservative criticism, in general, has focused on increasing tax breaks and reducing spending.

Future Majority has a great post up today that touches on this criticism:

Boehner’s argument is bunk. As Rahm Emmanuel repeatedly stated during a Meet the Press appearance, and as Lawrence Sumemrs did on Meet the Press just this past weekend, increased education aid is an investment in the future of the American workforce. A more educated population leads to a stronger middle class. When a family can get aid, and don’t need to mortgage their home to send children to college, that strengthens the middle class and the economy. And $13 billion in Pell Grant aid is money that will be spent completely and quickly, helping to financially shore up our universities, many of which are facing funding cuts from the states. It pays teachers and buys equipment which in turn creates other jobs. That’s not stimulus?

Ironically, increasing Pell grants will “provide stimulus in roughly the same way as tax cuts to these families would. The grants provide recipients more disposable income, which is likely to lead them to spend more.” Unlike many of the tax cuts that conservatives are calling for, Pell grants are targeted specifically to young people from low-income families, which is another way of saying that they are targeted to some of the people who need them most.

Tags: college, college affordability, economic meltdown, higher ed, stimulus