Before Democratic presidential hopefuls proposed “free” college, President Obama gave the nation “free” healthcare. That’s going to be the new Republican line of attack against Democratic higher education plans.
Obamacare devastated young Americans and Hillary Clinton’s college tuition plans will do the same, says veteran Republican strategist John Feehery, who believes that’s the message GOP candidates need to hammer home if they wish to persuade young voters to embrace conservative solutions to higher education and the burgeoning student debt crisis.
“Obamacare has been a lesson for young voters who supported ‘free healthcare for all’ and now have to pay more,” Feehery told the Washington Examiner.
Since the 2016 presidential campaign season began, three major Democratic presidential candidates — Clinton, Bernie Sanders and Martin O’Malley — have each rolled out proposals to eliminate college tuition altogether or minimize the cost to a point where students can pursue higher education without having to take out student loans.
Clinton’s plan, revealed on Tuesday, would tie federal funding for four-year public universities to state-guaranteed “no loan tuition.” The former secretary of state’s proposal would also cap itemized tax deductions on high-income earners at 28 percent to generate revenue for the additional federal funding of higher education.
“It’s like a middle class entitlement that is completely unnecessary,” Jay Schalin, a policy analyst for the North Carolina-based John William Pope Center for Higher Education Policy, told the Examiner.
Feehery describes Clinton’s plan as “disastrous” and says Republican candidates should avoid entering into a “bidding war” with the presumed Democratic nominee.
“Republicans can’t get into a competition of giveaways because giveaways never end,” he said.
Schalin predicts that a percentage of voters will indeed “base their voting on whether they are going to get free stuff,” but says there are “mature voters who will respond to a message that says we’re going to be fiscally responsible when it comes to college and not just be throwing more money at it.”
“The GOP has never gotten the vote for people looking for free things and that’s the not what they should concentrate on,” he said. “If the name of the game is giving free stuff, how can you compete with that? And is that the game they want to play? No, no it’s not.”
Both men suggested that Republican candidates compare their grievances with government-run healthcare to what they anticipate would occur if government increased its involvement in higher education.
“If they were to couch this as a government takeover of higher education, that scares some people,” Schalin said. “It’s a nice piece of rhetoric.”
According to Schalin, the former first lady’s plan “puts the federal government in the driver’s seat of higher education” and will result in increased tuition costs.
Clinton advisers reportedly told the New York Times that her college proposal would award an additional $175 billion in federal grants to states that significantly reduce tuition rates at their public universities. Clinton said Tuesday that her plan would cost taxpayers an estimated $350 billion over the next 10 years.
Feehery says GOP hopefuls should mimic Clinton’s message by sympathizing with students over the “high price of college and student loans.”
“Student debt is having an enormous impact on society in a variety of ways and Republicans need to talk about it,” he said.
Schalin said Republicans should discuss how they intend to cut universities’ operating costs and “get government off the backs of universities so that tuition will be reduced.”
So far, an anonymous GOP source with knowledge of the Party’s messaging strategies says Rubio has become the “best exemplification” of what candidates should do to communicate their ideas on higher education.
“He’s doing what we saw Obama do in 2008 by playing the relatable card,” the source said. “He himself struggled with student loan debt — as recently as four years ago he paid off around $100,000 in student loans — and we saw him communicate that during last week’s debate.”
In addition to personalizing the matter politically, Feehery says Republican candidates can make inroads with young voters if they discuss the economy under President Obama.
“Young voters are smart enough to understand that the [Obama] administration hasn’t helped them out very much,” he said. “They’re savvy and I don’t think they’re going to vote for Hillary Clinton just because she’s promising free tuition.”
