Did Democrats Double the Student Loan Rate?

"Subsidized student loan interest rates used to be 6.8%. But when Democrats took over the House in 2007, they passed phased-in cheaper rates for subsidized student loans. The rates fell to the current low of 3.4% for subsidized Stafford loans this past school year." - CNN

John Boehner tweeted: "Student loan rates set to double because a Democratic-controlled Congress voted to double them."

The same way Bush raised taxes by cutting them with a tax cut that had an expiration date? (Republicans said we didn't need to pay for extending them by the way, like they're saying we have to pay for keeping low rate student loans.)

The same way Obama raised taxes by giving us the Making Work Pay Credit in 2009-2010 which the Tea Party Congress wouldn't let him renew for 2011? (It was replaced with a Social Security tax cut which gives about equivalent savings for some.)

Boehner also said: "The health care law will cause significant job losses for the U.S. economy: the Congressional Budget Office has determined that the law will reduce the “amount of labor used in the economy by … roughly half a percent…,” an estimate that adds up to roughly 650,000 jobs lost."

The CBO report actually said that because people would get better access to health insurance under the new law, some 650,000 people could choose to work less or could retire. The GOP cited another report and failed to mention the part which predicted an offsetting gain of 890,000 jobs in hospitals, doctor offices, and insurance companies.

Boehner is such a sack of shit. Makes me embarrassed he's from Ohio.

We need someone in the House who will say, "Instead of letting rates return to 6.8%, how about we further halve them to 1.7% because we're still recovering from the recession that hit in 2008?" Even if 0% APR was charged, the government would still get their loan money back on a repaid loan.

Relevant Links:

Student loan rate hike: What you need to know
The problem with Boehner's logic
Debunking False Claims About Health Reform, Jobs, and the Deficit
Job-killing law?