Political stunts and political smarts
by digby
There has been a fair amount of jaded criticism from the wonkosphere over Elizabeth Warren's alleged student loan "stunt" but apparently it's gaining political steam anyway:
A little more than two weeks after introducing her first bill, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) is already seeing a wave of strong support.
Back on May 8, Warren announced her plans to set student loan interest rates at the same level big banks receive from the Federal Reserve. Come July 1, some student loan rates are set to double from 3.4 percent to 6.8 percent, prompting Warren to push for legislation that reduces the level to 0.75 percent.
By Thursday, Warren's website showcased that more than two dozen organizations have endorsed the measure. Among the notable supporters were major universities like the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and groups like American Federation of Teachers.
Coupled with the support from outside sources is a strong core of political colleagues behind the bill. Sens. Mark Begich (D-Alaska), Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), Mary Landrieu (D-La.), Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and John Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) have joined on as co-sponsors, and Rep. John Tierney (D-Mass.) has introduced a corresponding House version of the bill.
I realize that Warren's "stunt" will not fix the problem for all time or change the very face of student debt forever as the wonks seem to believe is necessary for any legislation to be deemed worthy, but this short term fix is well worth doing anyway. I'm quite sure Warren understands the details --- she's quite the wonk herself, obviously. But she also clearly understands the value of using her position and the process to change the way people think about the role of government and develop trust between politicians and their constituents. This is good politics, something is short supply in the Democratic party especially when it comes to making a progressive case on economics. Good for her.
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