Making Sense Alerts

Over the next few weeks, the problem of paying for a college education will be particularly newsworthy for two reasons: (1) As students graduate, high school seniors and their parents will face the anguish of paying for college while college seniors will face the agony of student debt. (2) The U.S. House and Senate recently passed legislation to pay college tuition for recent military veterans—legislation that John McCain opposed and President Bush is threatening to veto.

Americans are angry about gasoline prices. Gas prices have become a "financial hardship," 71 percent of respondents said in a recent poll, and 78 percent believe the price increases will be permanent. Meanwhile, 83 percent think "oil companies as a whole are making too much profit." At the same time, the media is giving a free pass to the Bush administration and its conservative allies. Yes, there has been a totally predictable increase in demand for oil from China and India. But while news stories blame higher gasoline costs on this increased demand, as well as commodities traders and "global unrest," they completely ignore the conservative energy policies that led America to this point. The run-up to Memorial Day is the perfect time to link pain at the pump to right-wing energy policies.

Health care really matters to people; this issue will provide an important dividing line between candidates. For the most part, Americans want to know one thing about a health care plan: how it will affect them personally. Citizens will be hostile to a plan that pushes them off their current health insurance, and that’s what Sen. John McCain's plan would do. Americans want to lower their health care costs, but the McCain plan would increase those costs for most families. Now is the time to demand that conservative candidates go on record about health care: Do they endorse the McCain health care plan, yes or no?