Higher education has been one of President Trump’s best areas. He and Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos have made some noteworthy improvements, particularly the replacement of Obama-era Title IX regulations with ones that are more fair, and an executive order protecting free speech. If there is to be a second term for Trump, higher education would probably change little.
In contrast, if Joe Biden wins, the Democratic platform contains a raft of very costly higher ed proposals.
In today’s Martin Center article, Anthony Hennen takes a look at how the candidates compare on higher ed issues.
He writes, “Democrats have treated higher ed as a major issue, especially one to motivate young voters. The Republicans have treated it as an afterthought. The Biden campaign’s plan is wordy and in-depth, whereas the Trump campaign’s plan—a bullet list of self-proclaimed accomplishments—offers little detail.”
Among the most expensive Biden proposals are tuition-free community college, tuition-free four-year college (for families earning less than $125,000 per year), a doubling of Pell Grants, and more subsidies for HBCUs and Hispanic-serving schools. Hennen quotes AEI’s Rick Hess, who calls the Biden plans “the most expansive, expensive, and intrusive proposal ever offered by a major party nominee.”
We can also expect a return to those Obama-era Title IX regulations, so beloved of campus lefties. And I shudder to think about other regulations a “progressive” Education Department would impose.
Be afraid, ladies and gentlemen. Be very afraid.