President Obama: Putting higher education within reach for every American

Saying that we should be "doing everything we can to put higher education within reach for every American," President Obama uses this week's address to urge Congress to make sure the cost of student loans don't double:

In America, higher education cannot be a luxury. It's an economic imperative that every family must be able to afford. That's why next week I'll be visiting colleges across the country, talking to students about how we can make higher education more affordable ' and what's at stake right now if Congress doesn't do something about it. You see, if Congress doesn't act, on July 1st interest rates on some student loans will double. Nearly seven and half million students will end up owing more on their loan payments. That would be a tremendous blow. And it's completely preventable.

And Obama places the blame squarely on Republicans:

Instead, over the past few years, Republicans in Congress have voted against new ways to make college more affordable for middle-class families, and voted for huge new tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires ' tax cuts that would have to be paid for by cutting things like education and job-training programs that give students new opportunities to work and succeed.

We cannot just cut our way to prosperity.

Saying that "making it harder for our young people to afford higher education and earn their degrees is nothing more than cutting our own future off at the knees," Obama concludes by saying that building "an economy where everyone gets a fair shot" is a question of values and promises that he will continue to make that argument in the coming days, weeks and months.

Complete transcript below the fold.