On May 8, Senate Republicans put a block on a Democratic bill that keeps student loan interest rates from increasing. If the bill does not pass, college students will end up paying an estimated amount of a thousand dollars more for tuition each year.  

Democrats want the student interest rate to remain at 3.4% whereas Republicans want to double it to 6.8%. The 52-45 vote to begin the debate was shy of only eight votes in order to begin the debate.  

With the low rates of unemployment and economic hardships, paying an estimated thousand dollars more could be a challenge for most students. 

Post-secondary education is no longer an option. It is a necessity. According to  Democratic Iowa Senator Tom Harkin, on average, workers with a bachelor’s degree earn 85% more than a high school graduate. The majority of jobs now require a college degree and the demand for them keeps on growing. 

Republicans favor to double the interest rates because they would gain more money from our student interest rates. Republicans also believe that higher education should be restricted to higher class millionaires, like themselves.

Earlier this month, President Barack Obama made an appearance on “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” to discuss his proposal for lower-rate student loans. 

While on the show Obama discussed how he once had student loans and how he can personally relate to college students problems.  While earning his undergraduate and law school degrees, Obama and his wife Michelle encountered a large amount of debt due to high tuition prices. 

It wasn’t until eight years ago that both of the Obamas paid off their student loans. Because Obama has been in our shoes he deeply understands that the cost of college could be a burden, therefore he strictly believes that college loan rates shouldn’t increase.

“Now is not a time to make school more expensive for our young people,” Obama said during his interview with Fallon. “There are some in Congress who disagree. They say keeping the interest rate low isn’t a way to help our students. They say we should be doing everything we can to pay down the national debt-well, as long as it doesn’t include taxing billionaires.”