Fear of Clowns

Bush has trumpeted proposed increases in Pell Grants as the "cornerstone" of his higher education policy (although he hasn't completely followed through on his promises), yet when Kerry supports increasing Pell Grant funding, the Bush campaign lists it as an unconscionable increase in spending:

• Increasing Pell Grants is a great thing:
  "U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige today announced that the administration's fiscal year 2004 budget proposal would include a $1.9 billion increase for the Pell Grant program. This record request would increase Pell Grant funding to an all-time high of $12.7 billion and enable almost 4.9 million students to receive a Pell Grant--nearly one million more than when President Bush took office two years ago."
  - US Dept. of Education press release, February 1, 2003

• Really, it's a wonderful and responsible idea:
  "The cornerstone of the Administration's higher education policy is an additional $1 billion for Pell Grants, increasing the maximum award for all students to provide more need-based grant aid to low-income college students. Department of Education funding for Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Historically Black Graduate Institutions, and Hispanic-Serving Institutions would increase 6.4 percent over 2001 as the first installment toward the President's goal of increasing these programs 30 percent by 2005."
  - White House budget blueprint, "A Responsible Budget for America's Priorities", February 28, 2001

• But if Kerry suggests increasing Pell Grant funding, it's an unconscionable budget buster:
  "Fact Sheet: The Costs of John Kerry's Campaign Promises
  ... An updated analysis of Senator John Kerry’s campaign promises shows they would cost at least $977 billion over 5 years and $1.9 trillion over 10 years. This is new government spending on top of the President’s budget.
  ... Increase Federal Pell Grant Funding, $16 Billion Over 2 Years. (Kerry For President Website, "Working For African Americans," Accessed 1/20/04; Drew Johnson, "The Return Of Fuzzy Math And Risky Schemes: How Presidential Hopefuls Would Deepen Deficits," National Taxpayers Union Foundation, 1/19/04)"
  - Bush Campaign "Fact [sic] Sheet", Tuesday, April 06, 2004

Bonus prevarication: Neither of the two sources cited for Kerry's "$16 Billion" increase mention Pell Grants at all.

// posted by Erik @ 4/08/2004 10:11:00 AM
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