[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 89 (Tuesday, June 10, 2014)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3511-S3512]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
BANK ON STUDENTS EMERGENCY LOAN REFINANCING ACT--MOTION TO PROCEED
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I move to proceed to Calendar No. 409, S.
2432, the Warren college affordability legislation.
The PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will report the motion.
The bill clerk read as follows:
Motion to proceed to the consideration of S. 2432, a bill
to amend the Higher Education Act to provide for the
refinancing of certain Federal student loans, and for other
purposes.
Schedule
Mr. REID. Mr. President, following my remarks and those of the
Republican leader, if any, there will be a rollcall vote on the
confirmation of Hannah Lauck, who will serve in the State of Virginia.
Following that vote the time until noon will be equally divided between
the two leaders or their designees.
At noon there will be two rollcall votes on confirmations that come
from the Judiciary Committee. One is a judge who will preside in
Massachusetts by the name of Sorokin, and one will preside in the State
of Nevada by the name of Boulware.
Following the vote on the Boulware nomination, the Senate will recess
until 2:15 p.m. for our weekly caucus meetings. At 2:30 p.m. there will
be three cloture votes on Federal Reserve nominations: first, cloture
on the nomination of Lael Brainard to be a member of the Board of
Governors of the Federal Reserve System, then cloture on the nomination
of Jerome H. Powell to be a member of the Board of Governors of the
Federal Reserve System, and finally, cloture on the nomination of
Stanley Fischer, who is already a member of the Federal Reserve but he
will be elevated to be Vice Chair of the Board of Governors.
Measure Placed on the Calendar--S. 2450
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I understand S. 2450 is at the desk and due
for a second reading.
The PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will read the bill by title for
the second time.
The bill clerk read as follows:
A bill (S. 2450) to improve the access of veterans to
medical services from the Department of Veterans Affairs, and
for other purposes.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I object to any further proceedings at this
time.
The PRESIDENT pro tempore. Objection is heard. The bill will be
placed on the calendar.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, this is landmark legislation. I so
compliment Senators Sanders and McCain for coming to this agreement. I
hope we can move this bill expeditiously.
Boulware Nomination
Later today the Senate will vote to confirm a man by the name of
Richard Boulware to be a district court trial judge for the State of
Nevada. A remarkable man he is, extremely smart, and he is a very
talented lawyer from Las Vegas. His father was the first neurologist to
come to Las Vegas--a fine man--and his mom was very politically active
in a lot of matters for so many years.
Richard F. Boulware has impeccable credentials. He grew up in Las
Vegas and attended Harvard University. He went out on his own after
graduating from Harvard. He had a consultancy, and he was watching the
impeachment proceeding that took place of President Clinton and he said
to himself: I should be involved in understanding this stuff more. So
he applied to Columbia. It wasn't a walk in the park for him to go. It
was extremely expensive. But he is so smart. He got scholarships almost
all the way. He graduated very high in his class at Columbia.
Upon graduation, he worked at Covington & Burling in New York, one of
the premier law firms in the country. He also became a Federal public
defender in New York. Since 2007 he has been a Federal public defender
in Nevada. If confirmed, Richard Boulware will become the first African
American man to serve on the U.S. district court in Nevada.
I had the pleasure and good fortune to put the first woman on the
Federal bench in Nevada. She was a black woman. She was so good. Her
name is Johnnie Rawlinson. She was so good that in a very short period
of time she was elevated to become a member of
[[Page S3512]]
the Ninth Circuit. During Obama's presidency, she has always been on
the short list.
Richard Boulware will be just as good as any member of that bench we
have in Nevada. I am impressed with his dedication to the State of
Nevada. He has already distinguished himself as a public servant. So I
look forward to his confirmation today.
Student Loans
Mr. President, we have all seen the old cowboy western movies that
saw some unfortunate character getting into quicksand--either pushed or
fallen--and they try everything they can to get him out. It is always
the same scene in the movies. An unsuspecting person winds up in
quicksand, panics, flails around, and each time he does that he gets
deeper and deeper into this earthy liquid.
Fortunately, a hero always comes to the rescue. Sometimes it is with
a rope or branch or something to pull him out of the quicksand to
safety. That happens once in a while but not very often in real life.
In America today millions of Americans are caught in financial
quicksand and looking for a helping hand to pull them to safety. About
45 million Americans have student loans. As their debt mounts, they
sink deeper and deeper into financial hardship. There is more student
debt today than there is credit card debt.
These Americans who have these loans are trying their best to make
good on their student loans. They are working multiple jobs, pinching
pennies. But even the slightest hiccup can plunge them into financial
ruin.
The Bank on Student Emergency Loan Refinancing Act, introduced by
Senators Elizabeth Warren and Al Franken, is a lifeline. Just like
people being stuck in the quicksand in those movies, people are stuck
in the quicksand in real life with student debt. The bill would provide
graduates who are now beholden to higher interest rates with a 2-year
period to refinance current student loans at 3.86 percent.
This legislation would allow more than 25 million Americans to
refinance expensive student loans. In Nevada, more than 250,000 student
loan borrowers would save thousands and thousands of dollars in
interest rate fees by refinancing at current rates.
But the problem of mounting student loans is not limited to
individual borrowers. It is a problem that threatens our entire
economy. I had a call yesterday with a bunch of college students in
Nevada. They can't get married, they are living with their parents, and
they are struggling. Is it worth it for me to go to college? I spent
time trying to convince them that it was and it is.
Student loan debt now exceeds far more than $1 trillion--approaching
$1.3 trillion. That is more than credit card or auto loan debt. As of
last September, 40 percent of student loan borrowers were in default,
forbearance or deferment. Yet even as many Americans make loan payments
on time, the staggering amount of those installments precludes young
Americans from buying houses, beginning families or going into
business. The legislation before the Senate will give borrowers a fair
shot in investing in their families and their financial well-being. As
young Americans are able to purchase new homes and invest in their
futures, it will inject much-needed capital into our economy.
Unfortunately, not all Senators agree that allowing borrowers to
refinance their student loans is a good idea. I was disappointed to
learn my colleague the Republican leader doesn't support this
legislation. It wasn't long ago that he referred to this proposal we
are taking up here today dealing with student loan debt--$1.2 trillion
or $1.3 trillion debt and 45 million people it affects--he called it a
fake fight.
For 25 million Americans, or even more, who stand to benefit from
this bill, I assure my friend there is nothing fake about helping
working families pay off debt and save money.
I so admire what the President did yesterday. He said that if you are
continuing to refuse to legislate--and we know there has been
obstruction after filibuster after obstruction after filibuster. The
President said before the American people he was going to do everything
he could administratively. Yesterday he did. What he did isn't as good
as what we are doing, but he did what he could to help 5 million
students with their debt. So to a single mother working two jobs just
to take care of her family, make a student loan payment on time, this
legislation is real. But instead, the Republican leader has reaffirmed
his commitment to the status quo. Why reform today when he and his tea
party-driven members said they will reform next year or maybe the next
year?
We Democrats aren't standing around waiting for a new year or a new
Congress to tackle the problem of student loan debt. It is real. We are
anxious to extend a helping hand to the more than 40 million Americans
who are fighting to keep their heads above water, trying to get out of
the quicksand.
So let's come to the aid of those individuals struggling with student
loan debt and keep them from sinking deeper and deeper into financial
quicksand.
Reservation of Leader Time
Mr. President, would the Chair note the business of the day.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the leadership time
is reserved.
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