Senate Democrats Posturing On Student Loans But Ignore Jobs Crisis For Young Americans

Esteemed Senate Democrats!
This Dem once had a "job" before
destroying jobs and the economy
by voting for ObamaCare!

Today in Washington, D.C. - May 24, 2012
House still in recess. The Senate reconvened and resumed consideration of the motion to proceed to S. 3187, a bill concerning FDA user fees. This afternoon, the Senate will vote on as many as 7 amendments to the FDA bill. Once all the remaining amendments have been disposed of, the Senate will vote on final passage of S. 3187.

Following the final vote on the FDA bill, the Senate will resume consideration of S. 2343, the Democrat bill to preserve lower student loan rates by raising taxes on small businesses and taking money from Medicare. The Senate will then vote on a Republican substitute amendment that would prevent the rate increase by taking money from an Obamacare slush fund. Following that vote, the Senate will vote on passage of S. 2343. Both the GOP amendment and the underlying bill will require 60 votes for passage.

Speaking this morning on the student loan issue, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell said, “This problem could have been solved weeks ago. Democrats weren’t interested. They wanted a scapegoat more than a solution. . . . The Democrat plan is designed to fail. . . . [T]hey propose to divert $6 billion from Medicare and to raise taxes on small businesses — hurting the very companies we’re counting to hire today’s college graduates.  They’ve known for months we won’t support this tax hike and that it couldn’t pass either chamber. It has already failed. But they’re proposing it anyway, for a second time.”

He explained, “[S]ince passage isn’t their goal, [the ]other side huddled behind closed doors, out of sight of the public and the press, and produced the tax hike instead of letting the committee do its work. We already know how this story ends. So why are Democrats forcing us to vote on their failed proposal yet again? Because, as I’ve said, they’re more interested in drawing our opposition — of creating a bad guy — than in actually solving the problem.”

McConnell added, “When it comes to college graduates today the bigger issue is the President’s economic agenda, which has created an environment in which most of them can’t find a decent job.”

He then highlighted recent news reports which describe the " grueling job hunt” for young graduates, a jobs “crisis” for young adults, and Gallup's finding that there is “a disaster for those unemployed and underemployed as they look for jobs when so few new jobs are being created. For younger Americans as a group, this is a particularly acute issue.”

In the last six months, the AP reported, “A weak labor market already has left half of young college graduates either jobless or underemployed” and a Pew study found “the lowest employment-to-population ratio for young adults since 1948.” Time reported: “[n]early 25 million adults live at home with their parents because they're unemployed or underemployed” and The Wall Street Journal, “Only 49% of graduates from the classes of 2009 to 2011 had found a full-time job within a year of finishing school . . . .” Earlier this month, Gallup wrote, “April has also brought gloomy job news for young Americans and underscores that this group has been struggling disproportionately for some time.”

Sen. McConnell said,“ the real issue here isn’t the fact that certain students are going to see an interest rate hike — because we will address that concern. It’s that so many young people today can’t expect to find a job that would enable them to pay off their loans in the first place. That’s the bigger problem! And the solution is a pro-growth agenda that would make it easier for U.S. businesses to hire — not a tax hike that will make it harder. . . . As with so many pressing issues, the President has not led on this issue. He has campaigned on it, but has not worked to actually fix it. The American people are tired of the posturing and the games. . . .  And it’s time for Senate Democrats to stop the political theater and to find a real solution.”

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Tags: Senate Democrats, posturing, Student Loans, ignoring Jobs Crisis, Young Americans, old Americans, no jobs, government spending To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!