Student Loans Deal Reached in Senate

[Frodo]

Deal reached on student loans

By BURGESS EVERETT and MANU RAJU |
7/17/13 11:59 AM EDT Updated: 7/17/13 8:23 PM EDT

Senators have reached a deal on student loans, Senate sources said Wednesday night.

Key bipartisan Senate negotiators met in Majority Whip Dick Durbin’s Office late Wednesday and emerged confident that they could finally put the vexing issue behind them.

(...)

Alexander, the top Republican on education issues, said their proposal would apply retroactively to students who have already drawn federal loans at higher rates which went into effect on July 1.

A Senate aide familiar with the talks said the bill could go on the floor as soon as tomorrow. Leadership aides said that’s implausible but not impossible. Otherwise the bill would get a floor vote early next week.

The new proposal  would peg rates on new loans to 10-year Treasury notes plus 2.05 percent for undergraduates with a cap of 8.25 percent. Graduates would pay the 10-year Treasury rate plus 3.6 percent with a cap of 9.5 percent and 4.6 percent for PLUS loans with a cap of 10.5 percent.
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Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2013/07/student-loan-rates-senate-deal-94337.html#ixzz2ZMcvo2Rt

[jaichind]

Sigh.  I am opposed to this.  Student loans just give universities the excuse to up their rates to capture the government subsidy.  This is one giant scam.  A person is willing to pay and most likely only have X dollars to pay for college.  With student loans of Y dollars (discounted for the cost of interest) the university will just charge X+Y instead of X.  

[Joe Republic]

General question:  what is the point of reaching any kind of deal in the Senate right now?  Any actual progress on any meaningful subject will either get gutted by the House, or more likely completely ignored.  They might as well sit around naming post offices or whatever until both chambers are run by the same party once again.

[Blue3]

General question:  what is the point of reaching any kind of deal in the Senate right now?  Any actual progress on any meaningful subject will either get gutted by the House, or more likely completely ignored.  They might as well sit around naming post offices or whatever until both chambers are run by the same party once again.

1. It could pass in the House
2. If the House votes against it, this gives ammo for the Dems to use in 2014

[Joe Republic]

General question:  what is the point of reaching any kind of deal in the Senate right now?  Any actual progress on any meaningful subject will either get gutted by the House, or more likely completely ignored.  They might as well sit around naming post offices or whatever until both chambers are run by the same party once again.

1. It could pass in the House

Haha, sure thing.

2. If the House votes against it, this gives ammo for the Dems to use in 2014

The House is about to vote to repeal Obamacare for the 38th time.  No amount of Dem ammo will be enough to get the voters to bring down these incompetent psychopaths (by enough of a margin to overcome the gerrymander, at least).

[Cory]

The House is about to vote to repeal Obamacare for the 38th time.  No amount of Dem ammo will be enough to get the voters to bring down these incompetent psychopaths (by enough of a margin to overcome the gerrymander, at least).

I honestly don't think that the "average voter" really cares if the House Republican vote against Obamacare a bunch of times. Things like this Student Loan compromise, Immigration Reform, the impending military reform in regards to sexual assault policing will be bigger factors. The Obamacare voted are just "shout outs" to the base.

[barfbag]

Or the less government funds education, the less universities are able to charge. I'm completely against the federal government being involved with education with exceptions of discrimination.

[Frodo]

General question:  what is the point of reaching any kind of deal in the Senate right now?  Any actual progress on any meaningful subject will either get gutted by the House, or more likely completely ignored.  They might as well sit around naming post offices or whatever until both chambers are run by the same party once again.

It seems the House GOP is eager to prove you wrong. 

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

Why the hell is higher education a for-profit industry anyway?

[politicallefty]

General question:  what is the point of reaching any kind of deal in the Senate right now?  Any actual progress on any meaningful subject will either get gutted by the House, or more likely completely ignored.  They might as well sit around naming post offices or whatever until both chambers are run by the same party once again.

It seems the House GOP is eager to prove you wrong. 

The House will only possibly agree because it's a nasty deal for those with student loans. House Republicans would just as soon force students to get their loans entirely from the banks. If interest rates start to get high again, students will be looking at a minimum of 8.5%. Unfortunately, the Reed-Warren Amendment to cap undergraduate loans at 6.8% only got 46 votes in the Senate.