{"id":27556,"date":"2019-12-15T06:31:10","date_gmt":"2019-12-15T06:31:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.englishforums.com\/news\/?p=27556"},"modified":"2019-12-15T06:31:10","modified_gmt":"2019-12-15T06:31:10","slug":"us-candidates-clash-over-free-college","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.englishforward.com\/news\/us-candidates-clash-over-free-college\/","title":{"rendered":"US Democratic presidential candidates clash over tuition-free college scheme"},"content":{"rendered":"

US Democrat presidential candidates Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders have announced their intention to make public college free for everyone.<\/strong>
\nThe Vermont senator\u00a0and Elizabeth Warren proposed eliminating tuition at public colleges and universities while expanding Pell Grants, which provide financial support to low-income students that, can be used for nontuition expenses.
\nBoth presidential candidates also call for a government bailout of all student loan debt.
\nPete Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Ind, has disagreed with Warren and Sanders’ proposal, demanding an income limit, instead.<\/strong>
\nButtigieg criticized the idea of universal free college plans because the wealthy stand to gain more.
\nAlthough Warren and Sanders agree on providing tuition-free education, they have also disagreed on ways to implement their proposal.
\nSanders’ proposal would make two- and four-year public and tribal colleges and universities tuition-free and debt-free, and erase the roughly $1.6 trillion in student loan debt currently owed in the US.
\nThe proposal would cost $2.2 trillion over ten years, which Sanders says would be paid for by a tax on Wall Street.
\nWhile Senator Warren\u2019s free college proposal is alike and also provide broad debt relief, hers caps it for households with incomes over $250,000.<\/strong>
\nWarren also said<\/a> her proposed wealth tax would fund her plan.
\nButtigieg proposed to make public college education tuition-free only for families earning up to $100,000 annually while offering reduced tuition on a sliding scale to households<\/a> earning between $100,000 and $150,000.
\nAlso, presidential candidates such as Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar and former Vice President Joe Biden, have both spoken out against free four-year college. Biden has proposed<\/a>\u00a0free tuition at two-year community colleges but would not eliminate tuition at four-year institutions.<\/p>\n

Who benefits?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The idea of colleges and universities tuition and debt-free has been criticized by many. They argue that the scheme would benefit the rich instead of the poor and middle-class students who need help the most.<\/strong>
\nAccording to Buttigieg, the idea of universal free college plans on the grounds that they would make higher education free even for the kids of millionaires.<\/p>\n

\n

New Pete ad in Iowa taking aim at Warren and Bernie over college affordability\/debt (but not by name), arguing they\u2019d alienate half the country by insisting it be \u201cfree even for the kids of millionaires\u201d. H\/t @McCormickJohn<\/a>
pic.twitter.com\/SEAcOdHcAq<\/a><\/p>\n

— Alex Thompson (@AlexThomp) November 29, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n