The president likes to clothe his progressive beliefs in a comfortable toga of poll-tested generalities.
But on last week’s education “reform” tour, he stripped down to his ideological skivvies, oiled up his rhetoric, and flaunted his political power to enthralled academics, administrators and journalists.
He made clear that whoever has the gold writes the rules, to an audience of students and academics who know that 70 percent of students are funded by $150 billion in federal dollars.
“Taxpayers are often providing those families and students assistance, we want to make sure taxpayers are getting a good deal,” he said, while describing his ambitious plan to rate universities’ and colleges’ performance at a test to be drafted and graded by Obama’s progressive monitors.
Government expertise trumps the universities’ autonomy, and government’s priorities top Americans’ free-market preferences, Obama insisted.
“I’m in my second term so I can say it. … I believe, for example, that law schools would probably be wise to think about being two years instead of three year. … The third year they’d be better off clerking or practicing in a firm, even if they weren’t getting paid that much,” said the president, who was acting as the nation’s law-school-dean-in-chief.
And also as the nation’s concerned-parent-in-chief.
“I know a lot of stories of people who are LGBT who come out to their parents, and their parents are supporting them financially for college, and when they come out their parents cut out that support,” said one of the attendees. “I was wondering if maybe in the future part of your affordability for college would be able to include LGBT people?”
“I don’t suspect that we’ll have special laws pertaining to young people who are cut off from support by their parents because their parents hadn’t gotten to the place I think they should be,” Obama said.
But, he added, “We are going to make sure that all young people get the support that they need so that if their parents aren’t willing to provide them support. … They’re able to still go to college and succeed,” he reassured the petitioner.
He also found time to worry about the nation’s toddlers.
“I want to expand early childhood education so that it’s accessible for every young person in America,” he declared. He referred to himself 111 times at the Binghamton event.
“I’m wondering if there’s any provisions within your educational act that would support health care workers and nurse practitioners to create a sustainable workforce,” said one eager questioner.
“You’re absolutely right that one of the keys to reducing our health care costs overall is recognizing the incredible value of advanced practice nurses and giving them more responsibilities,” responded America’s hospital-administrator-in-chief.
“There are some special programs for nurses who are committing themselves — as well as doctors who are committing themselves — to serving in underserved communities,” Obama said.
If young Americans play along with his priorities, they’ll get paid, Obama emphasized to compliant students at a Friday meeting in Scranton, Pa.
“You may choose a profession that doesn’t pay a lot of money … if you’re giving back to the community, we should help you do it,” he said.
“If you’re willing to commit to five years working in a place that doesn’t have a doctor and you’re studying to be a doctor, we’re going to forgive you a bunch of those loans,” he told a Binghamton graduate student seeking more federal cash.
There were no dissenting questions among the university-trained attendees in Binghamton.
“I’m going to shut up and listen to the wisdom that I hope you will bring to my question,” said one academic who was showed his eagerness to enlist in the president’s effort to redesign the nation’s energy sector.
During his speeches on the two-day tour, Obama conceded nothing to the free-market and conservative advocates who say ambitious government wrecks more than it can deliver.
“I’m a doctoral student here as well as a writing instructor at Syracuse University,” said one questioner. Federal funds “are going to for-profit colleges — or colleges I might even call predatory … so I’d like to hear your insight.”
“I’m not against for-profit institutions, generally,” Obama said.
“What you’re absolutely right about is, is that there have been some schools that are notorious for getting students in, getting a bunch of [federal] grant money, having those students take out a lot of loans, making big profits, but having really low graduation rates,” said Obama, who learned politics in Chicago, when the graduation rate in government schools was 44 percent.
Nationally, private sector and government-overseen colleges graduate only 58 percent of students by the sixth year of four-year courses.
Obama’s confidence in government even survives his own experience in Washington. His presidency has cost future taxpayers at least $7 trillion in new debt, yet average household income has fallen 4.4 percent since 2009, and the formal unemployment rate has fallen largely because millions of Americans have given up looking for jobs.
“The other party right now in Congress…. seem more interested in trying to placate their base or scoring political points,” complained Obama, the nation’s top Democrat.
“That can’t be how we run a country,” he said.
“That’s not responsible leadership.”
