Letter: Student debt

To the editor:

On Wednesday, Sens. Pat Roberts and Jerry Moran voted to block legislation aimed at letting people refinance their student loans at lower rates. The student loan bill would have let millions of borrowers, some with years-old debt and interest rates topping 7 percent or more, refinance at today’s lower rates.

The proponents made the choice clear: millionaires and billionaires or students? People who have already made it big or people who are still trying to get a fair shot?

A broad grassroots effort with more than 750,000 signatures on petitions was gathered. That’s how the bill got well over 50 votes. 

The case was made. When the government reduces its profits on student loans, reducing tax loopholes benefitting millionaires and billionaires would make up the money. It called on the wealthiest among us to pay at least as much in taxes as middle-class families.  

Most Republicans said it was more important to protect the tax loopholes for millionaires and billionaires than to cut the rates on student loans.  But this issue will not go away! 

A special thanks to the three Republican senators who voted to support students: Susan Collins of Maine, Bob Corker of Tennessee and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska. Unfortunately, our Kansas senators, Jerry Moran and Pat Roberts, chose protecting the millionaires and billionaires over students!

Our students, past and present, deserve better than this!