Democrats fail to reduce the power of money in politics
Navient, in its 2021 midyear lobbying report, said the company had rallied behind a variety of student-debt-related issues, including improving loan-repayment programs, assisting borrowers in default on their debt, and easing the process for bankruptcy discharges. The company did not provide comment for this story.
In 2020, the industry donated about $715,000 to candidates, with the money evenly split between both parties, according to OpenSecrets.
Student-loan companies, through political action committees, are also major donors to political campaigns
“Our concern is always that monied interests have a much bigger presence and effect on policy,” Dan Auble, a senior researcher at Open Secrets who focuses on lobbying data, told Insider.
This spending isn’t new. According to Open Secrets, student-loan companies have exhausted more than $47 million on lobbying the federal government and nearly $5.5 million on campaign contributions over the past decade, seeking to prevent student-debt policies that run counter to their interests. (más…)