GOP Presidential candidate Donald Trump and Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson may have more in common than one might initially think. They are both businessmen turned politicians who have switched party affiliations during their careers. They have each made decreased government spending a pillar of their campaigns and have trumpeted the argument that Washington is rigged to grant power to the elites.
They have also each made blundering statements at rallies and during media events of late. It is almost impossible to be unaware of the numerous ridiculous and untrue claims and insults made by Trump throughout his lengthy campaign (such as the claim that global warming is a construct of the Chinese government to gain an advantage in the global industrial market and the insinuation that Mexico is shipping hoards of rapists and murderers to the United States). But Johnson too has shown himself to be of questionable competence to take over as Commander in Chief. When asked about his plans for Aleppo, an historical Syrian city in which war has waged on the streets for nearly four years, Johnson made it clear that he could not identify the subject of the question. His encore performance, in which he could not come up with the name of a single current world leader, certainly did not garner anymore confidence in his grasp on foreign policy.
But beyond all of this, Trump and Johnson are similar in their shared belief that the United States should eliminate the Department of Education, a drastic action that would be a huge step backwards in dealing with the student debt crisis in this country. A comprehensive list of the adverse effects such a decision would lead to can be seen here, but allow me to summarize:
The Department of Education awarded $27 billion to 8 million students in Pell Grants in 2015. Upon its dissolution, this debt free money for students would be lost, meaning students would need to rely even more heavily on loans that come with mounting interest rates. The Department of Education also manages some $1.3 trillion in federal student loans - debt that could presumably be sold to private companies that could increase interest rates and eliminate the friendly repayment options offered by the federal government. This could be detrimental to finding solutions for the millions of people suffering with insurmountable amounts of student debt and make it even more difficult for future students to get a high level of education without putting themselves behind the eight ball financially.
If this issue is something that affects you or someone you know, voting for either of these candidates is counter intuitive. Hillary Clinton supports the important work that the Department of Education does and is bringing real solutions for those buried in student debt and future students to the table.
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