Press Releases
Brendan Daly/Nadeam Elshami
202-226-7616
09/20/2007
Pelosi: ‘Our Nation’s Future Will Only be as Strong as The Commitment We Make to Our Students’
“Thank you, Congressman [George] Miller, for that introduction and for your passionate advocacy for younger Americans.
“Thank you, President [H. Patrick] Swygert for hosting us today at historic
“As you will see, much of the progress the New Direction Congress has made on behalf of students and young Americans is due in part to the Chairman of the House Committee on Education and Labor, George Miller.
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“The new Democratic Congress is focused squarely on the needs of young Americans because we implicitly understand that our nation’s future will only be as strong as our commitment to your future.
“In the last election, your generation made clear that the status quo was unacceptable, and you voted in record numbers for a New Direction.
“Two million more young people voted in the 2006 election than in 2002, which is a testament to your commitment to change and to a better
“Today, as we unveil our Progress Report for Young Americans Issues, you will see that the New Direction Congress heard your call for change. We are listening, and we are making remarkable progress on the issues that young people care about most.
“This week, we sent to the President landmark legislation that reduces college costs for millions of young Americans.
“The College Cost Reduction and Access Act makes the largest investment in student financial aid since passage of the GI Bill in 1944. Just as the GI Bill helped the Greatest Generation achieve the American Dream, this legislation will spur our economy and educate the next great generation of American leaders.
“By cutting student loan interest in half and increasing the maximum Pell Grant to $5,400, the bill will break down the financial barriers that prevent too many students from pursuing higher education. And this legislation, I’m pleased to say, is fully paid for.
“When people ask me what are the three most important issues facing the Congress, I always say the same thing: our children, our children, our children. Their health, their education, the economic security of their families, safe clean neighborhoods in which they can thrive, and a world at peace in which they can make their contributions and reach their fulfillment.
“From the perspective of the Speaker’s chair in the House of Representatives, the prism that we see that chamber, our country, and our world through, is through the prism of the needs of
Read the Progress Report on the 110th Congress for Young Americans Issues:
http://speaker.gov/communities?id=00019