Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders is making strides in Iowa these final few days before the caucus. One of the reasons is his assertion that the economy can be fixed through what others deem his radical agenda. Sanders asked Iowans if his idea was so farfetched after all.
Iowa is a leader in the nation in public education. The idea he is proposing, he said, is no more radical than one that Iowans had over 100 years ago.
Sanders added that today, a college degree is the equivalent to what a high school degree was 50 or 60 years ago. If we stay consistent with the idea that public education is accessible for everyone, this needs to go beyond kindergarten through 12th grade into tuition free colleges and universities. The other issue facing education is the staggering number of Americans who are dealing with exorbitant student debt. It is ridiculous for people to pay interest rates of six, eight, 10 or even up to 15 percent on student loans, Sanders said, when a house can be financed for three or four percent. Eradicating student debt is an expensive proposition, and Sanders is asked every day how the government is going to pay for it. He says we will pay for it with a tax on Wall Street speculation.
Sanders, who made these comments during a campaign stop in Carroll earlier this week, has now surpassed Hillary Clinton in Iowa according to a CNN poll released last night (Thursday). Sanders is favored at 51 percent to Clinton’s 43, but voters said that Clinton had a better chance of winning the general election by an overwhelming margin of 60 percent to Sanders 38 percent.
