The hits just keep on coming with this lady:
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/...
Bruce Braley is using a series of visits to college campus this week to draw a contrast between himself and U.S. Senate opponent Joni Ernst on higher education access and affordability.
Braley, a Democrat, appeared at Kirkwood Community College and the University of Northern Iowa on Monday to "discuss the clear choice" between himself and Ernst, a Republican.
While serving in Congress, Braley said he's worked to expand federal tuition grants, preserve low interest rates on student loans and continue education tax credits. He contrasted that record with calls by Ernst to eliminate the federal Department of Education, which administers many of those affordability programs, and to privatize student lending entirely.
Braley will hold additional education-themed events at colleges and universities across the state later this week. - Des Moines Register, 8/25/14
Yep, Ernst actually called for it's elimination as you can see in the above video. The Iowa Democratic Party is hitting Ernst pretty hard on this issue:
http://www.iowademocrats.org/...
Did Joni Ernst benefit from Pell Grants and Stafford Loans for her college education? Now, Ernst wants to take that opportunity away for every other Iowan.
As the fall semester for Iowa college students is just beginning, Joni Ernst wants to put an end to federal student loans and Pell Grants – a move that would dramatically increase the cost of college for Iowa students and give a massive windfall to Wall Street banks.
Ernst described these Tea Party ideas at a candidate forum in April at Iowa State University, saying:
“The federal government has to get out of the student loan business… our students, as they’re going off to whether it’s a two-year institution, a community college, whether it’s a four-year institution and beyond, we need to ensure that they’re able to find student loans at reasonable rates within private banking entities. So let’s get the federal government out of the business of student loans.”
Just like her plans to privatize Social Security, Joni Ernst would put Wall Street banks in charge of college loans, putting their profit in between Iowans and a college education. Switching from federally backed student loans to all-private student loans would be a dramatic, costly shift for Iowa students. Private loans can mean thousands more in payments over the life of the loan, as compared to federal student loans.
But Ernst wouldn’t stop there. She has repeatedly said that she would eliminate the Department of Education, putting an end to Pell Grants for over 111,000 Iowa students and over 228,000 federal Stafford loans for Iowa students. Ernst bragged that she has the “intestinal fortitude” to make those cuts, but that’s something Iowans simply won’t stomach. - Iowa Democratic Party, 8/25/14
Yep, the GOP is getting nervous that voters are catching on to how extreme Ernst is. That's why they're resorting to this:
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/...
The 30-second spot features Republican candidate Joni Ernst pledging her support for the Social Security pension system and Medicare health-care program for older Americans.
"I'm gonna keep the promise we made to protect Social Security and Medicare for every senior that depends on them, like my mom and dad," Ernst says in the ad. "That's a promise I'll keep for their generation and generations to come."
It comes as both Ernst and Democratic candidate Bruce Braley seek to paint one another as unreliable on the future of the popular entitlement programs.
Braley's campaign and Democrats on Monday called the latest ad "dishonest," pointing to statements from Ernst during her primary campaign earlier this year suggesting younger American workers could "transition" to a new retirement savings program that might include investments in the stock market.
"While her campaign can try to hide her Tea Party agenda, Joni Ernst has made it abundantly clear she would privatize Social Security, end guaranteed benefits for Iowans on the program, and gamble retiree savings on Wall Street," Braley spokesman Sam Lau said. - Des Moines Register, 8/25/14
We cannot afford to let Ernst dupe voters. Click here to donate and get involved with Braley's campaign:
http://www.brucebraley.com/