Former U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., held a roundtable discussion with students Friday at Ian’s Pizza on State Street to talk about college affordability and student debt.
The discussion focused on the personal struggles of students to afford the college education that today’s job market requires. Though students said the need for a college degree has increased in recent years, they shared their concern that rising costs present a major hurdle in achieving that goal.
“A lot of us feel pretty trapped,” said Danny Levandoski, a UW-Madison junior studying history and political science.
Feingold pitched a four-part proposal to make higher education more accessible, while also throwing his support behind U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and her efforts to achieve similar goals in the Senate.
“I see a dramatic denial of the American dream that you guys have to deal with,” Feingold said to the students. “The fact that you’ve got this hanging over your head is wrong, but we can fix it.”
Feingold’s plan involves increasing support for Pell Grants and making it illegal for the government to profit from student loans. He also described a program that would provide matching federal dollars for state-funded higher education, incentivizing state investment in colleges and universities.
This stop on the campaign trail comes after Feingold visited all 72 Wisconsin counties in 101 days. He said that the issue of college affordability was one that came up many times in his discussions with Wisconsinites across the state.
Feingold was also not afraid to call out his opponent U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., on his engagement with student issues.
“We went out and talked to people in a way that he’s never done and apparently doesn’t care to do,” Feingold said, also taking issue with Johnson’s classification of student loans as “free money.”
“There’s a sharp philosophical difference between me and Mr. Johnson on federally assisted student loans,” he said.
