Bobby Schilling and Cheri Bustos say they know something about the high cost of college and high student loan debt. But they just don't agree on what to do about it. That was one of several disagreements last night between the candidates for Illinois' 17th District seat in Congress. Schilling is a republican who held the seat for one term until he lost to democrat Bustos two years ago. And he's a father of ten.
“When you’ve got kids that are going to college and it’s $50,000, $60,000 per year, that’s ridiculous. And I think the competition, whether it’s online or it’s through, you know, they states or the country, I think will definitely help to draw down those prices.”
But Schilling thinks a bigger threat than that is the lack of jobs available to college graduates. Bustos has three children - and one of them now has a large loan to pay off. She calls student debt a "crisis."
“I have supported legislation that allows students to refinance their student loans at a lower level. I have been a lead sponsor of legislation that expands Pell grants, so those students who can’t go to school because they can’t afford it, it gives them an opportunity to do that.”
They also disagree strongly over who's contributed to the gridlock in Congress and whether federal policy encourages companies to ship jobs overseas, or forces them to look for lower regulation and lower costs.