state of the union

Just a few highlights of things that reference the Millennial Generation. Read the whole thing here

• "most daunting challenge can be the cost of college. At a time when Americans owe more in tuition debt than credit card debt"
• "Congress needs to stop the interest rates on student loans from doubling in July"
• "Higher education can’t be a luxury – it’s an economic imperative that every family in America should be able to afford"
• "states also need to do their part, by making higher education a higher priority in their budgets"
• "After all, innovation is what America has always been abt Most new jobs are created in start-ups and small businesses" - true, many by youth

OWS

• "And we've put in place new rules to hold Wall Street accountable, so a crisis like that never happens again."
• "And I will not go back to the days when Wall Street was allowed to play by its own set of rules. The new rules we passed restore what should be any financial system’s core purpose: Getting funding to entrepreneurs with the best ideas, and getting loans to responsible families who want to buy a home, start a business, or send a kid to college.
• So if you're a big bank or financial institution, you are no longer allowed to make risky bets with your customers' deposits. You’re required to write out a "living will" that details exactly how you’ll pay the bills if you fail -- because the rest of us aren’t bailing you out ever again. And if you’re a mortgage lender or a payday lender or a credit card company, the days of signing people up for products they can't afford with confusing forms and deceptive practices are over. Today, American consumers finally have a watchdog in Richard Cordray with one job: To look out for them."

In response, the PIRGs put out a release regarding the impact of the President's speech and potential legislation on higher education:

"“In this economy, we cannot double the student loan interest rate. Without a new plan, millions of students will pay a crushing $5,200 more on their student loan than they otherwise would,” said Rich Williams, Higher Education Advocate for US PIRG. “Students are already weighed down by state budget cuts, struggling family finances and uncertain job prospects. We applaud President Obama for his proposal to keep student loan interest rates low.”

If Congress does nothing, borrowers who will takeout the maximum $23,000 in subsidized student loans will see their interest balloon to an additional $5,200 over a 10-year repayment period and $11,300 over a 20-year repayment period.

In addition to loans, many students work their way through college to keep their debt burden low. However more full time students are becoming full time workers. With the economic down turn, it is getting harder for those students to find and continue employment. Doubling the amount of work-study jobs, as proposed by the President, will help support needy students willing to work hard make it to graduation."

Here is a chart (PDF) from the PIRGs on how students would be impacted if the interest rate on student loans doubled in July.

Handsome blogger Karlo Marcelo from FM was interviewed during a watch party for the State of the Union. He has great comments about the speech and the President.

Watch CBS News Videos Online

Karlo Marcelo counts himself among the many here who remain optimistic about this presidency, but he acknowledges that the current climate in Washington is a long way from the halcyon days of 2008.

"I think that campaigning and governing are two different things," Marcelo said. "And I think a lot of us knew that governing was going to be a totally different thing."

President Obama's focus on the economy is exactly what Millennials (Americans born between 1982-2003) want to hear. Their generation is experiencing Depression levels of unemployment, higher than any other generation. They deeply believe that the path to a better job leads through a better education.

That’s why any Millennial jobs program must begin with the steps outlined in the President’s speech—a revitalization of community colleges, increased Pell Grants and a $10,000 tax credit for four years of college. Those who have graduated from college with unprecedented debt will particularly welcome the President's call to limit the amount they have to repay in any given year based on their income with complete forgiveness after twenty years or only half that time if the engage in public service. And the President's call for a small business hiring tax credit should help give Millennials a chance to earn some money as they enter the toughest job market any generation has faced in twenty-five years.

Equally important are his administration’s K-12 education reforms that have attracted bi-partisan support from the parents of Millennials all across the country.

Now the Congress needs to step up to the plate and deliver on Obama's proposals. If Republicans continue to follow their "just say no" approach, they risk losing an entire generation of voters. But Democrats must prove they can govern, and deal with Millennial concerns when they do, if they hope to generate enough enthusiasm from young voters in 2010 to provide Democrats the type of victory Barack Obama enjoyed in 2008. Like First Lady Michelle Obama did during the State of the Union speech, they should put Millennials in the best seats in the House and keep their future uppermost in their minds as they fashion a new economy for these young Americans. It’s time to answer President Obama’s call to do “what’s best for the next generation.”

 
Morley Winograd and Michael D. Hais are fellows of NDN and the New Policy Institute and co-authors of Millennial Makeover: MySpace, YouTube, and the Future of American Politics (Rutgers University Press: 2008), named one of the 10 favorite books by the New York Times in 2008.

After electing the President to office young people haven't exactly been the bastions of recipients of bills passed this past year, nor has there been a whole heck of a lot of outreach from the White House. But tonight the President outlined a few things we have reason to be excited about.

First was a little shout out to clean energy and creating jobs for those who are being good stewards of our land.

"We should put more Americans to work building clean energy facilities, and give rebates to Americans who make their homes more energy efficient, which supports clean energy jobs. And to encourage these and other businesses to stay within our borders, it's time to finally slash the tax breaks for companies that ship our jobs overseas and give those tax breaks to companies that create jobs in the United States of America."

The Energy Bill is coming up in the next few weeks, and this is the end all be all bill for our generation. It will be because of this bill that we curb hazardous waste, stop despicable practices in creating electricity, and forever mandate that our country lead the way in clean technology to save our planet for Millennials and our children. If, at the same time, we create a ton of jobs for Generation Unemployed, then I say bring it on and lets pass this Energy Bill NOW.

Second, is a little help with the cost of college tuition, better schools, better education, and maybe... just maybe some hope for employment.

" The idea here is simple: instead of rewarding failure, we only reward success. Instead of funding the status quo, we only invest in reform - reform that raises student achievement, inspires students to excel in math and science, and turns around failing schools that steal the future of too many young Americans, from rural communities to inner-cities. In the 21st century, one of the best anti-poverty programs is a world-class education. In this country, the success of our children cannot depend more on where they live than their potential.

When we renew the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, we will work with Congress to expand these reforms to all fifty states. Still, in this economy, a high school diploma no longer guarantees a good job. I urge the Senate to follow the House and pass a bill that will revitalize our community colleges, which are a career pathway to the children of so many working families. To make college more affordable, this bill will finally end the unwarranted taxpayer-subsidies that go to banks for student loans. Instead, let's take that money and give families a $10,000 tax credit for four years of college and increase Pell Grants. And let's tell another one million students that when they graduate, they will be required to pay only ten percent of their income on student loans, and all of their debt will be forgiven after twenty years - and forgiven after ten years if they choose a career in public service. Because in the United States of America, no one should go broke because they chose to go to college. And it's time for colleges and universities to get serious about cutting their own costs - because they too have a responsibility to help solve this problem."

Associate Rich Williams from the U.S. Public Interest Research Group Higher Education issued a statement on the higher education issues addressed in President Obama’s State of the Union address, saying

"We are thrilled that the President renewed his commitment to a greater investment in higher education, even as he proposed a three-year freeze on many other funding areas.

Time and again, America has seen the college educated strengthen the nation’s social and economic fabric. Investment in education is proven to strengthen the economy. We applaud the President for reaffirming that investment in the education of our young adults is essential to the country’s recovery and long-term strength.”

I will say, however, one of the best comments I saw came from Natasha Chart who said on twitter in response to the "best anti-poverty program was education" that perhaps a better one would be "supporting living wages for high school graduates." I couldn't agree more.

While the President championed higher education from four year to community college level, there must be an increased focus on helping youth who do not go to any institutions of higher learning and instead rely on their public high school education to prepare them with basic skills necessary in today's entry level jobs. Further, lets help these young people who want to work full time but still seek training at trade schools and technology institutes without being overburdened by out of touch FAFSA requirements like parental tax records for youth that are on their own (just to name one).

The comment from the president recognizing the plight of rural youth and their often sub-par education was also notable. So many children in rural areas lack adequate education, because school districts can't compete with good salaries, sexy locations, or other things to entice new teachers. If "the success of our children cannot depend more on where they live than their potential" then its time for our government, specifically the Secretary of Education to understand the differences between rural youth and inner city Chicago youth.

Pay-Go made an appearance:

"So I will issue an executive order that will allow us to go forward, because I refuse to pass this problem on to another generation of Americans. And when the vote comes tomorrow, the Senate should restore the pay-as-you-go law that was a big reason why we had record surpluses in the 1990s."

This has recently been stalled in the Senate so the President called them out. Here's the thing about pay as you go... when you have distribution of federal dollars that only goes to those with the biggest and best lobbyist or the elected official who has the most power - it rarely makes it down to the little projects.

While the President mentions specifically entitlement programs and the "Fiscal Commission" modeled on a proposal by Republican Judd Gregg and Democrat Kent Conrad I can promise you that not a dime of Social Security will be touched. If other entitlement programs like Pell Grants and the GI Bill have to be slashed completely on the "pay-go" model they will be to accommodate for things like Social Security and Medicare... simply because young people don't have the lobbying power to ensure otherwise. Pardon my cynicism, but its true, the lobbying force of seniors is just too strong.

In a response in the Federal Times Gregg Carlstorm says of the spending freeze

"Experts say the spending freeze is unlikely to have a significant impact on resources at most agencies. But John Palguta, vice president for policy at the nonprofit Partnership for Public Service, said it could lead to some cuts in staffing and training.

"There's a psychological impact," he said. "As soon as you tell federal agencies their budgets are frozen, they go into worst-case planning mode. They stop paying for training. They say, ‘Let's see how many jobs we can get away with not filling.' ''

Palguta said federal managers should also be concerned about one big unknown: pay increases. Agencies with frozen budgets might still have to accommodate federal pay raises over the next three years — which means they'll have to find cuts in other areas."

If the purpose is to create jobs in the upcoming year, cutting federal jobs with agency funding freezes and forcing people into the private sector might not be the best strategy. That said, I'm not an economist, so what do I know. I personally believe in curbing spending, considerably, but I think there are better places to do that while preserving people's existing jobs.

Perhaps we could sell that Bridge to Nowhere up in Alaska, or export some of our Reality TV, maybe the President could call on Conan to start a new national TV channel and the advertising dollars go to pay for agency budgets, heck reducing the number of troops in Iraq alone could seriously curb spending...

Another thing that our generation should be happy about is a renewed sense of inclusion from Washington that finally ... FINALLY ... we value all people equally ... or, at least, we're going to try to, or... maybe just ask people to try to.

"We find unity in our incredible diversity, drawing on the promise enshrined in our Constitution: the notion that we are all created equal, that no matter who you are or what you look like, if you abide by the law you should be protected by it; that if you adhere to our common values you should be treated no different than anyone else. . .

This year, I will work with Congress and our military to finally repeal the law that denies gay Americans the right to serve the country they love because of who they are. We are going to crack down on violations of equal pay laws - so that women get equal pay for an equal day's work."

One key way that we can help create more jobs in this country - or preserve the living wage - is by guaranteeing that all Americans that want to can serve in the US Military and that all women will earn equal pay for equal work. Both of these issues are ones that Millennials support overwhelmingly and it is high time that we set an example of civil rights to the rest of the world.

So, on the whole, a little good, a little iffy, nothing too shocking from the cheap seats. I want to be hopeful, I want to remain steadfast in my excitment for policies that impact our generation, but I'm also still crushed that I don't have a public option for my health care, so take with that what you will

State of the Union for Youth - By the words:
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