[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 193 (Wednesday, December 6, 1995)]
[House]
[Page H14140]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             SPREAD OF MISINFORMATION DISSERVICE TO AMERICA

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Pennsylvania [Mr. Goodling] is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. GOODLING. Mr. Speaker, I am sure if we could get the 1996 
election behind us, the misinformation that is being spread constantly 
would cease. What a disservice to this institution and to the other 
body, and to the administration and to the American people to continue 
this kind of misinformation day after day after day.
  Recently some of my colleagues have taken to the House floor to 
portray their view of the Republican efforts to balance the budget in 7 
years. Watching them, I found myself back in school reading Homer and 
Plato, Socrates, and all of those wonderful Greek myths that we all 
enjoyed as children. It is an appropriate reference to these works of 
fiction, as my colleagues would have the American people and certainly 
our friends in the press, swoon over the myths they portray. I would 
like to look at a couple of those myths tonight that I am very closely 
connected to.
  Myth No. 1, Republicans are cutting student loans. Even the President 
today in his message used that misinformation. Now, the fact is that 
student loans will increase by nearly 50 percent, nearly 50 percent 
over the next 7 years from $25 billion to $36 billion in the year 2002. 
This chart shows that. Each year during that time an increase, an 
increase, an increase, the whole way up the line throughout the entire 
period. Yet, you would be led to believe that the opposite would 
happen.
  More loans will be made available next year than ever before, rising 
from 6.6 million loans in 1995 to 7.1 million in 1996.
  For all students, the Federal interest subsidies on student loans 
remains intact, and there are 75 percent of the American people that 
have some problems with that, but nevertheless, that is the way it will 
remain, including during the 6-month grace period following graduation. 
For all parents, the interest rate on student loans remains the same.
  The Balanced Budget Act of 1995 does not include higher education 
cuts. There are no changes affecting student eligibility for Federal 
student loans; there are no changes affecting the amount of funds 
available for student loans; there are no changes affecting 
the interest rates, interest subsidies, or fees charged to the students 
or the parents. There are no special fees imposed on any schools.

  The next myth, students will pay more for their loans under the 
Republican plan to balance the budget. The fact is that the Republican 
balanced budget will result in significantly lowered loan payments, 
because Alan Greenspan and others tell us that if we get to that point, 
interest rates will drop at least 2 percent. Now, that is at least an 
$8 savings for every student out there with an average loan when they 
consider repayment.
  The next myth: Republicans are making extreme cuts in student loans 
while the President wants to save these programs. The fact is that the 
President's own budget director, Alice Rivlin, issued a memo 
recommending the elimination of the in-school interest subsidy for 
student loans as a method to balance the budget. We did not follow her 
advice. We found ways to do this without affecting students.
  By capping the President's direct loan program at 10 percent, the 
Congressional Budget Office has found that we will save $1 billion over 
7 years, again without harming students.
  Myth: Republicans will force hard choices on parents and families. 
Listen to what one of my colleagues said on the floor of this House.

                              {time}  1915

  They will, ``in some cases have to make the very difficult choice of 
which child will be favored with a college education and which will be 
told, well, you have to fend for yourself in the job market without 
that education.''
  Mr. Speaker, I find these scare tactics to be very irresponsible. 
Simply put, these are scare tactics based on incorrect information. It 
might be better that those parents would tell their children that there 
are hundreds of thousands of college graduates out there today either 
with no job or in a job way beyond their education, and at the same 
time there are hundreds of thousands of technical jobs out there 
begging for somebody to be trained in order to take those jobs, not a 
4-year college education.
  I want to repeat the facts. Republicans are increasing student loan 
volumes and balancing the budget. There are no cuts. Zero cuts. No 
eligible student will be turned away from the student loan program. 
Anyone who claims otherwise is simply misrepresenting the facts. No 
student or parent will pay more for their loan under this Balanced 
Budget Act of 1995.
  Again, I hope we can get correct information out to the public, and 
not play politics and use scare tactics while doing that.

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