Candidates on Education - Oct. 16

On October 16, 2012 President Obama and Mitt Romney had a Town Hall debate with CNN’s Candy Crowley as the moderator. The first question was from a first time voter and college student who wanted to know about being assured he could support himself when he graduated.

Romney said he wants to keep the Pell Grant and student loan programs going but didn’t really answer the question; he did repeat that he knows how to create jobs.

Obama said: 1) we need to change our tax code for those creating jobs here, not overseas, 2) we’ve made sure that student loans are available but he wants to make sure community colleges are able to train or retrain people for the jobs that are out there and will be there in the future, 3) we have to build on our energy sources, not for just now but for the future – like solar, wind, bio-fuels and energy efficient cars, 4) reduce our deficit in a balanced way by asking the wealthy to pay a little more, and 5) take the money we’ve been spending on war to rebuild our roads, schools and bridges.

Candy asked for more specifics from Romney in regard to those that need a job right now and he went on to say how the current policies aren’t working and that he has a 5 point plan for jobs and then said Obama did take the auto industry into bankruptcy – again he didn’t answer the question. Obama responded with – Romney wanted them (the auto industry) to go bankrupt without any assistance; they would have had to shut down. He said Romney doesn’t have a 5 point plan he has a one-point plan and that’s to let those at the top play by a different set of rules – pay lower taxes than the average American, ship job overseas and get tax breaks, invest in a company-bankrupt it-layoff the workers–strip their pensions and you still make money (Bain Capital). Romney got up and Candy had to stop him from responding although he did make a short comment.

The way the President described Bain Capital is correct from the information I found on the web. The student said if the election was held today, he would vote for Obama even though Romney offered him a job when he graduates. It’s good to know this young man could tell the difference between rhetoric and an outlined plan for his future.