House Majority Leader On Increased Higher Education Spending: “We Had The Money To Give Them”
On Chris Berg’s Hot Box segment last night he interviewed House Majority Leader Al Carlson about higher education issues (following up on his coverage of SAB’s story about Chancellor Shirvani’s new Porsche). Carlson’s answer when asked why spending on higher education has gone up so rapidly? “We had the money to give them.”
That’s just great, but not the worst part. Wait until Carlson talks about needing to bring in students to “fill our campuses.” The North Dakota University System hands out tens of millions of dollars in tuition waivers every year to bribe students into filling up our universities. And who pays for it? The taxpayers and the students who are on the tuition rolls.
Carlson is seen as one of the most outspoken critics of higher education in the legislature, yet if this tepid criticism of this problem is the most we can get from him, maybe it’s time for new leadership in the legislature. Heck, with leadership like this, no wonder higher education spending is out of control.
Admittedly, Carlson is a Fargo legislator talking on a Fargo television show, and North Dakota State University swings a lot of political clout in Fargo. But wrong is wrong, and that’s no excuse.
Tags: Al Carlson, Chris Berg, higher education, North Dakota News
