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Rubio: “All the left is focusing on is pouring more money into an existing, outdated status quo. But they have no ideas, whatsoever, about moving us into the 21st century, in terms of higher education. … What they’re hoping is that Republicans will just oppose it and have no alternatives. But we do have alternatives. We look forward to talking about those alternatives. And I hope they’ll give us a chance to vote on those alternatives.”

U.S. Senator Marco Rubio
Bill Bennett’s “Morning in America”
June 10, 2014
http://youtu.be/9J4xWdyahJA

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Senator Marco Rubio: “So the concept that we would somehow want to measure the repayment options that people have before them to how much they make, is not necessarily a bad one. And in fact, I’m working on a solution to do that in a responsible way. The problem with what the President has done, beyond the fact that it’s through executive action, is the forgiveness aspects of it. You know, after 20 years – 10 years if you’re in the public sector, 20 years if not – the whole loan is forgiven, and in my mind it creates the potential for more of this to occur in the future.

“I mean, one of the fundamental problems that we have in America today is we have a mid-20^th century higher education system, which is a cartel that protects itself against innovation and competition. And it is awarding a lot of degrees that don’t lead to jobs, and it’s charging a lot of money for it. The evidence is quite clear that the more money we’ve made available – whether it’s through loans or grants – there’s no incentive for these universities and colleges to — If I’m going to give you $4,000 a semester, what’s the incentive to lower my price to $3,500 a semester? The incentive is to take up all $4,000. And then a lot of it is people getting degrees that don’t lead to jobs. And, again, the liberal arts departments go nuts when you talk about the fact that an art history major is going to struggle to find a lot of work, given the new economy.

“So, I would hope that we would take a more comprehensive view of all the issues involving higher education in the 21^st century, including the need to create a system where a 41-year-old head of household – who has lost his job, or her job, and still has to raise a family and work full-time – is able to go back to school and acquire skills, or reacquire skills, that allow them to be employed. And all the left is focusing on is pouring more money into an existing, outdated status quo. But they have no ideas, whatsoever, about moving us into the 21^st century, in terms of higher education.”

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Rubio: “The message they’re trying to send here to 20-year-olds and 30-year-olds who can’t find a job is, ‘We’re here to help. We’re going to make your life easier.’ And what they’re hoping is that Republicans will just oppose it and have no alternatives. But we do have alternatives. We look forward to talking about those alternatives. And I hope they’ll give us a chance to vote on those alternatives. Unfortunately, in the Senate, Harry Reid these days doesn’t really allow a vote on anything.”