Rubio in Greenville: Give colleges more competition

Marco Rubio, the Florida senator who may seek the Republican nomination for president, said in Greenville Thursday that he'd reduce student loan debt by giving four-year colleges more competition.

Democrats quickly countered, saying Rubio voted to cut federal aid for college students.

Rubio appeared at the Barnes & Noble bookstore on Woodruff Road to sign copies of his new book and greet voters as he ponders a bid for the White House a year before South Carolina's first-in-the-South primary.

Asked about the problem of student debt, Rubio said he himself incurred more than $100,000 in debt as a student.

The son of Cuban immigrants who worked as a bartender and maid, Rubio said he'd push for alternative accreditation programs if he's elected president that would allow students to get academic credit for free online coursework and for work or military experience.

He also said colleges should be made to notify students how much they could expect to earn with particular degrees.

"What's happened with colleges is they have no competition," Rubio told The Greenville News.

"Right now, getting a four-year degree means going to a brick-and-mortar institution, sitting in a classroom for four years, getting 120 credit hours and they give you a piece of paper that certifies you graduated," he said. "And that will always continue as one of the choices, but we need to have alternatives to that as well."

Some young Democrats from South Carolina, however, criticized Rubio for voting in 2012 to cut federal Pell grants by $1,000 as part of a budget plan drawn up by Republican Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin.

In a conference call arranged by the Democratic National Committee, University of South Carolina sophomore Matthew Cauthen-Washington said federal grants paid much of his tuition, though he still owes more than $8,000 in student loans and can barely afford to pay for rent with his minimum wage job at a Five Points fast-food restaurant.

"Every single day I see these hardships, whether to pay tuition, buy books for classes or even afford a decent meal," Cauthen-Washington said. "Unfortunately I think because Marco Rubio has been away from college for a while, he doesn't realize that these are hardships that I, my friends and a lot of other college students around this country have to face every single day."

Answering other questions from reporters, Rubio said he doesn't think there's a constitutional right to gay marriage, but recognizes that marriage has "always been regulated at the state level, and legislatures — not courts — have a right to change those laws, and they have in many states."

He agreed that South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham would complicate South Carolina's primary contest if he decides to run for president.

A Graham candidacy would "be a real challenge to his opponents, not just in South Carolina, but in other parts of the country," Rubio said.

One Greenville voter who came for a signed copy of Rubio's book, "American Dreams," said he likes the senator and thinks he may fare better than another potential GOP presidential candidate, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush.

Jeffrey Glass, a 52-year-old sales director, said he's originally from Florida and lived there when Bush was governor.

Glass said he likes Bush but his "gut feeling right now" is that Bush may suffer from voter remembrances of his brother and father as president.

If Bush can't overcome that problem, "I certainly think the Republican Party is going to get behind Marco Rubio because he is the future of the Republican Party," Glass said. "He's young. He's a minority. His background is that he comes from the people."