Rep. Denny Rehberg: Pell Grants Are Becoming 'The Welfare Of The 21st Century'

Representative Denny Rehberg, the same Congressman who "objected" to HR 589 when Rep. Lee introduced it in the House, on Pell Grants:

In a radio interview on Friday, he compared Pell Grants to "welfare" and decried the fact that students who receive them don't have any sort of graduation requirement and could go straight from the education grant to "food stamps." "So you can go to college on Pell Grants -- maybe I should not be telling anybody this because it’s turning out to be the welfare of the 21st century," said Rehberg in an interview with Blog Talk Radio. "You can go to school, collect your Pell Grants, get food stamps, low-income energy assistance, section 8 housing, and all of a sudden we find ourselves subsidizing people that don’t have to graduate from college. And there ought to be some kind of commitment and endgame."

Rehberg added under the federal program, a student could "go to school for nine years on Pell Grants and you don’t even have to get a degree."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/01/denny-rehberg-pell-grants-welfare-21st-century_n_843712.html

DesperateInRI wrote:Representative Denny Rehberg, the same Congressman who "objected" to HR 589 when Rep. Lee introduced it in the House, on Pell Grants:

In a radio interview on Friday, he compared Pell Grants to "welfare" and decried the fact that students who receive them don't have any sort of graduation requirement and could go straight from the education grant to "food stamps." "So you can go to college on Pell Grants -- maybe I should not be telling anybody this because it’s turning out to be the welfare of the 21st century," said Rehberg in an interview with Blog Talk Radio. "You can go to school, collect your Pell Grants, get food stamps, low-income energy assistance, section 8 housing, and all of a sudden we find ourselves subsidizing people that don’t have to graduate from college. And there ought to be some kind of commitment and endgame."

Rehberg added under the federal program, a student could "go to school for nine years on Pell Grants and you don’t even have to get a degree."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/01/denny-rehberg-pell-grants-welfare-21st-century_n_843712.html

Not in California if you are going to school you get NO help no food stamps NOTHING.... I am going to school and plan to graduate next semster, and on to a BA... THEN with 30 years and a degree I can only pray I get a job.. I go to school at night looking for a job all day. Every job in my field wants a degree (BA) I would take any job trust me Pells are not that much not enough to pay rent and books and gas and everything you need to live while going to school... IF I ever get a job before I graduate I will NOT give up school I will never be in this postion again I have been turned down so many times because I dont have a degree...

IDK know about that...his comment makes me want to do some research. My instincts tell me he is exaggerating.

Who is going to be left to vote for these guys? NO unions NO college kids NO gays NO minorities NO unemployed (which are growing in number) Rich old white people will die off and that's the end of the repubs?

If any saw Maddow last night the ENTIRE police population has turned on them too.

gettheminNOVEMBER wrote:Who is going to be left to vote for these guys? NO unions NO college kids NO gays NO minorities NO unemployed (which are growing in number) Rich old white people will die off and that's the end of the repubs?

If any saw Maddow last night the ENTIRE police population has turned on them too.

Keep in mind, they don't have to win everything. In every election, they just make sure there is something about gays, guns, abortion or God on the ballot to bring out their base to vote.

54andpoor wrote:

gettheminNOVEMBER wrote:Who is going to be left to vote for these guys? NO unions NO college kids NO gays NO minorities NO unemployed (which are growing in number) Rich old white people will die off and that's the end of the repubs?

If any saw Maddow last night the ENTIRE police population has turned on them too.

Keep in mind, they don't have to win everything. In every election, they just make sure there is something about gays, guns, abortion or God on the ballot to bring out their base to vote.

MCcain never stood a chance and now with all the union busting balls bills they have even less support. If they want to win White House, they are going at it the wrong way.

I hope people learned their lesson to get out and vote or ya get what ya get. Like it or not. I have to say its nice to see people standing up and coming together. I can't wait to see what happens in the WI recalls.

I got a Pell in college and it helped me not take as many loans. As it is I am still $40,000 in debt and a worthless masters. This shows everyone how out of touch these morons are.

Yeah, my pell grants didn't even cover my tuition I don't think and definitely not tuition AND books.

lendmeflight2 wrote:Yeah, my pell grants didn't even cover my tuition I don't think and definitely not tuition AND books.

Well then I am glad this year is the last year my daughter will be collecting "Pellfare".

I am proud to say the this grant is named in honor of Senator Claiborne Pell, who served the state of RI for almost 40 years. When I was in high school, college was only a dream for many. Most of the boys that graduated were immediately drafted and sent off to Viet Nam. The kids that went to college were exempt from the draft, but at that time, only the rich could afford college. This grant brought some equity to the discrimination against the middle-class and poor in 1972. At least those who qualified for the grant could afford to go to a Junior College (as they were called at the time).

If there were more people in Congress today like Senators Pell and Kennedy, and even Byrd, we wouldn't be in the mess we are in today.

DesperateInRI, I by no means intended to insult Senator Pell or any other legislator involved in making Pell Grants available to millions of college students. And I agree if we had Senators like Pell, Kennedy and even Byrd we'd all be in a different place. Many apologies. Dazed&Confused

Dazed&Confused wrote:DesperateInRI, I by no means intended to insult Senator Pell or any other legislator involved in making Pell Grants available to millions of college students. And I agree if we had Senators like Pell, Kennedy and even Byrd we'd all be in a different place. Many apologies. Dazed&Confused

Apologies for what? I was just proud to say that my state Senator proposed this legislation in 1972 to stop the discrimination and allow kids to go to college instead of Viet Nam.

Honestly, there was no offense taken.

Okay, I was concerned about that!

Check out the Montana welfare subsidies here for Rehberg's home county of Yellowstone.

http://farm.ewg.org/region.php?fips=30111

http://farm.ewg.org/region.php?fips=30111&progcode=total&yr=2009

Ten percent collected 72 percent of all subsidies.
Amounting to $69.2 million over 15 years.


and he ranks 8 out of 435 in earmarks

https://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/earmarks.php?cid=N00004645&cycle=2010

He doesn't seem to have a problem with all welfare.