Not one to rest on her “impeach the mofo” laurels, Senator Warren adds another plank to the 2020 Democratic Party platform. Via TPM:
Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) on Monday unveiled a comprehensive plan to cancel student loan debt and provide free public college.
After making headlines by calling for impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump, Warren laid out in a Medium post her plan to cancel $50,000 in student loan debt for everyone who makes under $100,000 per year. Those making between $100,000 and $250,000 would see that $50,000 cancellation figure decrease by $1 for every $3 the person makes above $100,000…
The plan’s total estimated price tag is $1.25 trillion over ten years, which Warren says would be “more than covered” by her proposed Ultra-Millionaire Tax.
Where have I heard that “$1.25 trillion over 10 years” figure before? Oh yeah, that’s approximately what Trump’s deeply unpopular tax cut for fat cats cost the Treasury. Here’s a quote from Warren’s post at Medium:
We got into this crisis because state governments and the federal government decided that instead of treating higher education like our public school system — free and accessible to all Americans — they’d rather cut taxes for billionaires and giant corporations and offload the cost of higher education onto students and their families. The student debt crisis is the direct result of this failed experiment.
That’s the truth. Reagan was president when I was in college, and back then, it was possible to work your way through school even if you didn’t have a scholarship. You could do it with minimal to no loans because tuition was fairly affordable, and programs like Pell grants would pick up some of the costs. It’s a completely different world for my kiddo and her peers, and it’s not because they’re wasting money on avocado toast and iPhones.
Anyhoo, Elizabeth Warren: come for the courage on impeachment, stay for the nonstop roll-out of policies to address what ails us. I don’t know if she’ll win the nomination. The conventional wisdom says she won’t for a million reasons, including that many of the folks who would benefit from this plan are still enthralled with Shouty McWaggyfinger. But Warren is building a party platform, plank by plank, and it’s impressive.
Baud
I wish Dems would stop making everything about Trump.
trollhattan
I {heart} Liz.
Although I feel she’s buttering me up because she knows I have a high-schooler. “Damn you Warren, stop reading my mind!”
trollhattan
@Baud:
Eye Sea Wut You Done Dere.
(((CassandraLeo)))
If I hadn’t just sent her $20 last night, I’d send her $20 now. Go read her commentary on Game of Thrones if you haven’t already, BTW.
Kirk Spencer
Barring something extraordinary good or bas, I’ll be voting for Warren in the primary.
The Dem will get my vote in the actual unless maybe it’s Tulsi or the splitter. Even then maybe.
NotMax
At this point I’m more concerned with cleaning up sh*t on the ground than reaching for pie in the sky.
YMMV.
Betty Cracker
@(((CassandraLeo))): I saw that! I thought the meta-commentary about the election was interesting.
@NotMax: Walk, chew gum, etc.
Mary G
She’s definitely growing on me.
Nicole
I am always equal parts enraged and fascinated by how quick media types will be to criticize things like this with, “the nation can’t afford it!” and yet never say that when it’s tax cuts for the wealthy.
This nation is so messed up when it comes to how we perceive the rich. I’ve found it’s fun to call the hereditary wealthy, “private welfare kids.” People get really mad for some reason.
trollhattan
You must see the accompanying picture.
Bigfoot is real!
rikyrah
that $50,000 forgiveness would be a gamechanger. that’s a downpayment on a house. that is maybe investing in one’s self, if you are entrpreneurially inclined. That’s $50,000 that you can invest. It would open up so many options for many around this country.
West of the Rockies
EW is impressing me. I’m still loving Harris, but Warren has definitely grabbed the mic and declaring what she’s about. I hope it compels others to say more. I don’t need to hear anymore about white rural anxiety.
stinger
Warren has been my #2 choice, but she might just be a stalker. (horse race lingo)
West of the Rockies
@rikyrah:
Will no one think of the poor banksters?
Mike in DC
My 250k in law school debt has ballooned to 500k thanks to compound interest, so as awesome as her proposal is, I think she needs to talk to some folks who got graduate and professional degrees recently.
Just cancel all loan debt and replace loans with larger grants and apprenticeships with a job guarantee upon graduation.
zzyzx
Warren is starting to remind me more of Wilbur than anyone. Throw out all sorts of wonderful ideas that will happen if you’re elected, none of which have the slightest chance of coming true. Sure, it’s great for moving the Overton Window, but when we’re on year two of her administration and nothing has happened, it’ll just create more cynicism.
Do I like the ideas? Sure. It still feels like pandering.
Litlebritdifrnt
Here is another good idea for Warren to adopt.
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/apr/22/code-4000-we-teach-the-hard-way-prison-coding-initiative-launches-in-teesside?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
I have been calling for things like this for years. In Onslow County when I was there the prisoners in the jail were in their cells for 23 hours a day. (And this was pre-trial). It would make a bunch of sense to grab some Instructors from the Community College and teach the prisoners to code so the at least had a skill when they got out and would not be tempted to reoffend.
NotMax
@stinger
Well, she is a grandmudder.
(Ouch.) :)
Emerald
I’m also getting to be a bit swayed by EW. She’s showing real leadership. I think Harris might still be more electable, however, given the fact that Harris has a sharp enough tongue to break through the BS, and that our intrepid media do not give a tardigrade’s ass about policy proposals. HRC had more than anyone in history, and the public still think she didn’t have any.
The media did not report on HRC’s proposals. What’s to make them report on EW’s?
She really is starting to sway me, though.
stinger
@NotMax: LOL
gwangung
@zzyzx: It’s very clear that voters want change. Ergo, that change has to be dramatic and in the interests of the voters.
If you think that’s pandering, go ahead. But just be aware that she’s giving the voters what they want…and with decent logistical plans to carry them out.
Another Scott
@zzyzx: I like her proposals. They show what the nation can do if we give up our (enforced) mania about raising taxes (on anyone, anywhere).
She’s not proposing “90 minutes from New York to Paris” or similar pie in the sky stuff. The things she’s proposing can be done. All it takes is flipping enough seats, and seat-flipping depends on turning out people that agree with her.
I think it’s smart. And as her ideas gain more traction, she’ll get even more mileage out of them. Even if the final bill, when it comes, is different from her initial proposal.
My $0.02.
Cheers,
Scott.
patrick II
@NotMax:
I don’t think you can clean up the shit on the ground without some pie in the sky. First, because you need someone to vote for you, and second the system as it is is why all of that Shit is on the ground in the first place. Cleaning up the shirt without putting in some plumbing will get you nowhere.
Alternative Fax, a hip hop artist from Idaho
@rikyrah:
Life changing for hundreds of thousands, if not millions.
(((CassandraLeo)))
@zzyzx: Warren actually understands what she’s talking about, though, and her proposals have detail. Wilmer, when he was questioned about the details of his plan to break up the big banks, wasn’t able to answer basic questions about his proposal. That was when I stopped being able to take him seriously as a candidate. Warren actually shows her work.
Greg
Now I am even more happy that she got my first 2020 donation this weekend.
Cacti
This something I could see a lot more people getting behind than free college starting now/everyone with existing student debt, sucks to be you.
Alternative Fax, a hip hop artist from Idaho
@Mike in DC: I cannot even imagine. I knew I’m lucky to have graduated without debt due to state school/ parental contributions/scholarships but that is beyond my capacity to comprehend. I know some MDs with 200-300, but many practices cover loan payment as part of comp – and I advise all the psych residents I lecture to ask for it.
The number you mention is burdensome even on a BigLaw salary, which would presume you have the temperament for such an environment, and I admit I don’t.
Kylroy
@patrick II: The key difference for me between her and Wilmer is that I have faith in her ability to do the math and build the necessary coalitions to pass legislation.
Hoodie
The thought is in the right place, but implementation of this could be tricky. The 100k/year income limitation could backfire because, even though this is ostensibly paid by the millionaire tax, it will be viewed by many in the $100K and above population as welfare for poor people for what they may view as a luxury good. Since the total forgiveness is 50k, why not remove the cap? She’s right about the “failed experiment,” but has she dealt with the possible perverse incentives to the college industrial complex and student lenders? Would this give parsimonious state legislatures even more reason to cut university funding? You’re basically saying the first 50k is on the feds. It’s one thing to have free college in a place like France where there is a nationally-regulated system and access is limited by tests and other ostensibly merit-based factors, another to do this in a place as prone to inflation as the US system of higher education. There are a lot of great public colleges and universities, but there is also a significant amount of featherbedding and ripoffs, even on the public side (think money losing football programs).
James E Powell
If she does nothing else, it will be a great service. Democrats need a package and they need to stop joining in with Republicans and dickweeds in the press/media who want to promote bickering. We need a package to be our brand, not a “we can pass these on the first day” bundle of fully realized legislation.
zzyzx
@(((CassandraLeo))): that’s a very good distinction.
@Another Scott: I just don’t have faith that the senate can be flipped at this point, or if it can, it will be by a very tight margin where there will be blue dogs needed. In general I prefer bottom up ideas, passed locally in more radical communities so they can become mainstream but I don’t know if this would work if just CA did it
rikyrah
@zzyzx:
she always brings up finances along with her ideas.
HUGE difference from Bernie.
Leto
Part of the problem is the fact that just about every job now requires you to have a BA/BS, maybe barring burger flipper, although I might be wrong about that. Every job doesn’t require a degree. We need more 2 year schools and vocational education. The problem with degree saturation is also evident in the enlisted force (USAF). If you have any hope of making it to the senior NCO level, you better have a masters. You’re rated on whether you’ve been taking college classes each year (continuing education), what the degree plan is (related to your field?), and even if you earn a BA/BS, you need to keep going.
Every job doesn’t require a degree. Everyone doesn’t need to go to college. It shouldn’t be seen as a failure if they don’t. We also need to address that.
NotMax
Quick moment for a side note of pride in one of my alma maters, which in 2007 implemented a decision to eliminate student loans from all financial aid packages, replacing any such funds with additional aid scholarships.
James E Powell
@Hoodie:
Pretty much anything the government provides to poor people is viewed this way by the $100K and above population. If the government was giving them a dollar, these people would demand it be reduced to a quarter.
Ruckus
@(((CassandraLeo))):
Aww, the difference between a candidate and a spoiler. One does the work and the other bullshits. Oh well each to their strengths.
@Alternative Fax, a hip hop artist from Idaho:
I can not comprehend for a couple of reasons. First, a good education is not just about the paper, which seems to be what a lot of republicans think it’s about, the better paper the more power and money. Second if it costs so much for that good education that might allow one to actually accomplish something, is that something worth doing – shouldn’t that cost be part of the pay for having gotten the knowledge and using it? Third, with schools, as has been reported, having huge endowment accounts, why does that education cost so much in the first place – should there be such profits in the educational industry, which supposedly gives the institutions even more power and money, while not really improving the product?
I’ll stop now.
zzyzx
@Leto: When I taught in grad school, this was one of my hobby horses.
I was teaching students who had no interest in learning calculus who were doing so solely to get a piece of paper that might mean that they could get an unrelated job. If we cut out the need to get degrees to do anything and tried to refocus college on those who at least had a vague interest in the topics at hand, that by itself would help a ton.
I also “love” that tuitions are skyrocketing at the same time as tenure going away and adjunct professors are becoming more common.
Leto
@Hoodie:
It may be viewed as a “luxury good” but as long as those better paying jobs continue to require that piece of paper to even be considered, it doesn’t really matter what the rich think. It’s another box to check, and people are going to do their damnedest to check it. If they don’t want the poor in their colleges/universities, then fund 2 year colleges/vocational schools, and stop dismantling unions, where they can receive proper job training, with proper pay/benefits to boot.
Companies don’t want to train employees, state governments cut funding for education, yet both want smart people trained/employed in their states. People are going into insane debt just to try to make a decent living. I don’t really give a shit what people up the ladder are saying. Quit trying to pull it up behind you, assholes.
Martin
There’s an idea floating around UC and some other places to rethink this problem at a higher level. The idea is that you would go to school for free but pay a standard supplemental tax on earnings for the next 10 years. Say, 5% of your salary or some such, or less for a longer period of time, etc. There are a number of advantages to this approach:
1) College costs then scale to your ability to pay. Sure, there will be some people earning relatively little where that 5% will hurt more, but it beats a defined contribution situation.
2) Because the money colleges earn is now tied to how well their students do, they will be motivated to put more effort into placement and training that directly helps students after graduation. But because the college isn’t collecting that directly from the student, they lose the ability to create overly dependent structures between service and revenue. That is, they don’t know exactly where the money will come in from, so they need to provide services fairly broadly.
3) Colleges lose the ability to look at tuition and exclusivity to seek rent. That is, asking students to pay more for an exclusive experience goes away. What’s more, revenue is directly tied to ability to provide access. More students means more money is not how public education works now. Public schools are limited by how many dollars the legislature is willing to provide in subsidies, not in the demand from the public or the desire of the institution itself to grow. This fixes that problem.
4) If you happen to educate someone who does exceptionally well, say a Bill Gross who graduated from UCLA, then you’ve set up a more appropriate philanthropic giving program than currently exists. Pulling off 5% of his $1.5B net worth really goes a long way to that university. What’s more, you avoid the all too common occurrences that someone graduates from a public university but gives their fortune to Harvard or Stanford for the name recognition, as all too often happens.
There are downsides. Negative incentives to focus on high earning professions rather than broader education, etc. are certainly there, but those exist currently – notably in reverse, high earning professions that are hard to grow because the cost of hiring faculty is so high. Part of the reason why medical schools are not growing to meet the need for physicians in this country.
Ruckus
@Leto:
I left this out of my long comment to keep from making it a lot longer but it is a vital part of the entire system.
One of the problems of the educational system is that it has, for my entire lifetime worked towards building a professional, in the form of college educated, sit down, wear a tie or skirt type jobs. (Yes I know I’m showing my age – sue me) and it avoids jobs for people that produce stuff. I owned a business for 18 yrs that made stuff. Needed smart people who could learn, but a college education was not necessary, just a decent understanding of HS math and a willingness to have to wash your hands more than once a day. And that is far rarer than one might imagine because so many are convinced that college is the only way and that we use the education as a signpost, a box to click off on a CV, rather than an actual advancement in knowledge. We almost refuse to pay the people that build things and over pay those who add nothing to the growth of the entire nation, only their over inflated offshore bank accounts.
Martin
@Hoodie: What counts under the $50K is challenging. If it’s total need, even a lot of publics would be hurt.
UCLA is 400 acres total. They lack the land space to accommodate student housing in a cost effective manner, so their student housing costs are inevitably driven by surrounding residential rents. As such, their student need tends to be MUCH more heavily tilted toward room and board than many other publics. Newer UCs don’t have that same problem. UC Merced is 12,000 acres – the size of Santa Monica, where they could probably make room and board work under such a cost cap. Same for many land grant universities across the country, but you run into CCNY and other urban campuses and things get very challenging.
Leto
@zzyzx: I think that’s part of the blessing and curse of a liberal arts education. You get to experience a wide variety of topics which can help shape/mold your critical thinking abilities so that you’re not hyper focused into narrow lanes of thought. At the same time, you’re stuck with subjects you don’t always enjoy and have to slog through to get to the more interesting stuff.
Hoodie
@Leto: Oh, fuck off. All that’s true, but $100k-$250k (looks like the benefit ends there) is comfortable, but not exactly rich. I know plenty of tradespeople and small business people who make that much. Many of the people hit by the elimination of the SALT deduction would be in that range. Those people vote. You are not going to prevail going after those folks as “rich.” And you still haven’t addressed the tuition inflation that has been at least in part fueled by guaranteed student loans.
Martin
@Ruckus: I think that’s a very fair assessment.
Betty
It would be interesting to know more about her advisors. Who a President appoints to carry out policies is critical. She would of course need a friendly Congress so that had to be a high priority too.
hw3
Ok GD it. The trolls are out and trolling.
I
Googledsearched for Warren for President, and one of the top returns was elizabethwarrenforpresident.com which is a troll domain linking to an article about the whole Native heritage wingnut-manufactured kerfuffle.So I tried looking up the domain information on Whois.com to see who is proudly using their First Amendment rights to drive traffic to this non-issue, and guess what — the snowflakes have chosen to use anonymity to hide their identity.
I propose that the domain registration information for these kinds of troll factory names must be publicly available or can be taken down by the person to which they should likely belong.
Kirk Spencer
@Ruckus: the fly in the ointment is that we are well into the early stages of the supply economy. That is, where for most necessities only a few workers produce enough for everyone. The consequential choices include mass waste and people unable to pay for what is literally thrown away due to no buyers.
The degree is an artificial but simple trigger for getting the income sources. At least, until we get to the other side of change from want to plenty.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@zzyzx: zzyzx? Hmmm, one of the places I’m looking to shoot the Milky Way at this year.
FlyingToaster
@zzyzx: However, out here in the real world, having some familarity with a broad range of knowledge meant that we don’t ask the impossible of people in those fields outside of our own.
For instance: having a BSchool grad fulfill a arts requirement means when they have a office to decorate, they actually hire someone who can put together a decent professional look, rather than the boss’ wife who made the conference room look like a bordello (true story).
Or having a CS student complete a macro/micro econ set means that when we’re asked by a bean counter “what’s our return on investment”, we can answer the fucking question.
My one-semester Genetics course let me understand what they were telling me in genetics counselling when I was pregnant with WarriorGirl.
A good core curriculum at a liberal arts school is a fucking godsend, if you want an educated, informed electorate.
FelonyGovt
OT Michael Avenatti is in deep shit. https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwim1deLvuThAhVBo54KHevEArkQzPwBegQIARAC&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.latimes.com%2Fpolitics%2Fla-na-pol-avenatti-hassan-whiteside-embezzlement-20190421-story.html&psig=AOvVaw3ngw6wFsXC5zywCa8NFgRe&ust=1556049459769944
Mike in Pasadena
Warren-Abrams 2020!
Leto
@Ruckus:
Because it’s pushed so heavily in school. It’s not just a sign post, but they’re taught that from an early age. If you don’t go to college, you’ll be stuck doing menial labor. And the kids who aren’t in college prep/honors/AP courses are looked down upon as dumb. They take the “remedial” classes. Also I think it’s dumb to try to demand that 18 y/o’s know wtf they’re going to do with the rest of their life at that point. Part of what I heard college was “about” was finding yourself. That you could take all these different classes, discover what you might actually be passionate about. And that’s simply not true. You don’t have the time/$$$ to be able to do that. You either need to know wtf you’re going to do, otherwise you’re wasting time.
So much truth in this. Early in our military life, Avalune participated in a craft fair on base. Bought a lot of material, made a bunch of quality stuffed animals and other things. All hand made, took a bit of time, but really nice stuff. Day of the fair, took our stuff over, set up the table, and spent most of the day watching people buy… cheap stuff. People liked what they saw but didn’t want to pay a fair amount for what was involved. Later she took up knitting, and let me say, she’s an excellent knitter. About 6 years ago she made me a reversible cable knit scarf. Cashmere/merino wool blend. When I wear it, people absolutely love it. I take pride in telling them that Avalune made it for me. Inevitably they ask if she can make one for them, also willing to pay. I tell them upfront how much it “costed” and their eyes jump out of their head. The cost of the material is high, but the labor cost is even higher. It’ll last way longer than their polyester scarf (as well as feel nicer/warmer), but they don’t see that.
Americans have become so used to cheap manufactured goods that asking them to pay a fair amount is just torture. Not sure how we navigate that.
NotMax
@Leto
Small point, but those same people will willingly and repeatedly fork over six bucks for a lousy cup of coffee.
Leto
@NotMax: I need to keep to the Hemingway principle: They’re idiots.
One of the things I miss most about Italy are the coffee vending machines. € .50 for a good espresso. € .75 for a cappuccino. Six bucks for reheated ditch muck? No thanks.
Mike in Pasadena
@Litlebritdifrnt: My brother teaches high school subjects to prisoners in Arizona prisons. The actual classes are mostly to teach them reading, basic writing, and basic arithmetic. Most of the inmates are there for felonies and resorted to armed robbery because they had no way to earn a living. Teaching people to code when they cannot even read or write is unlikely to work. Nice idea if the situation were different.
NotMax
@Leto
Yup. The concept of value has become increasingly arcane.
Gravenstone
@West of the Rockies: They wouldn’t appreciate what I think of them. Restraining orders might become necessary if they knew.
Zzyzx
@FlyingToaster: agreed but only if the people there have at least a modicum of intellectual curiosity. I didn’t mind teaching people who wanted to learn (say) history and didn’t quite get how math fit in, but it was the people who didn’t want to be in college at all, but who knew that they needed the piece of paper to get a job that frustrated.
Tenar Arha
@Ruckus: This is all true.
But also they got rid of mandatory shop & home economics in grammar schools, and then later they phased out all the vocational classes from my suburban high school in the 1980’s.
Because IIRC it was also the teachers & school boards & the parental demands & the increasing prevalence of automation & even the tendency to hire college graduates as managers rather than training people into management.
And most places vocational training really was only for boys. I was taught (in no uncertain terms) by the time I was in 9th grade that VoEd classes weren’t exactly treated as equal opportunity training for equal opportunity jobs. If you were a girl you weren’t welcome in shop, & dog forbid you were a boy who wanted to do sewing or cooking. The problem with us in GenX is that our parents & teachers didn’t insist we get cross trained, they just let girls grudgingly participate in shop. So, even grade schools also dropped the classes that might have tempted some kids into choosing VoEd and thus maybe kept the demand alive. (It’s an interesting what if—broaden the number of kids participating & who knows what might have been).
Miss Bianca
OK, it’s official: Warren is my first political campaign contribution of 2019.
I mean, I already was favoring her in a neck-and-neck with Kamala Harris, now it’s time to put my money where my mouth is (and for the record, Kamala will be getting the $ love too, just a little later).
burnspbesq
I love that Warren is throwing out policy ideas by the basketful. I just wish there was a snowball’s chance in hell that her tax proposals would actually raise any significant amount of revenue.
trnc
I like Warren and I know she is a serious policy maker, but I’m not on board with free college for all (yet, anyway). As others have said, not everyone needs a college degree. Also, if this is paid for by clawing back the last tax cut for aristocrats, how do we pay for critically needed infrastructure repairs and new infrastructure without cutting into something else we need or adding to the debt?
I would rather see college being made more affordable through lower student loan rates and financial scholarships. Several years of reasonable student debt does not strike me as worse than a car loan or a mortgage IF that allows us to use tax revenue for other things.
If I misunderstand EW’s fiscal plans, I’m more amenable. I also think there’s a chance she’s introducing big ideas in order to get the conversation going, but is really shooting for less egregious college debt.