Brunner Again Uses New Media, This Time Advocating Student Loan Reform

Ohio Senate candidate Jennifer Brunner's campaign has been marked by a persistent use of and attention to new media (including an interview with our own Anthony Fossaceca and the hiring of this blog's founder, Jeff Coryell, as her personal campaign blogger). She has frequented this site and other Ohio blogs to answer citizen questions, and for that reason has earned a great deal of respect in our community for her willingness to reach out.

Today, that respect (to quote Emeril Lagasse) got kicked up a notch.

With a piece at Daily Kos, Ohio's Secretary of State and the darling of the netroots reached a national audience with an important message: student loan reform is needed, and it's needed now. The piece, which urges readers to contact their representatives in Congress, is a mandatory read for anyone with an interest in mitigating the high price of higher education.

The highlights:

-Brunner's own biography, which includes being the first in her family to attend college and her struggle to repay her own student loans after law school.

-Sen. Sherrod Brown's proposal for a "debt swap" wherein students could convert their private loans into federal ones after graduation, taking advantage of lower interest rates.

-Criticism of private loan issuers, through the lens of the now-infamous bailouts.

-Brunner advocates repeal of the Federal Family Education Loan program, with an eye toward saving some $87 billion over 10 years and reusing those funds for direct student loans.

On issue after issue, Brunner issues well-reasoned, deeply considered positions and a clear way forward for Ohio and our country. She's a true credit to our Party and our state, and I encourage you all (regardless of your affiliations in the internecine Fisher-Brunner debate) to take a look at yet another solid piece of public policy advocacy on Brunner's part.