To: The United States House of Representatives and The United States Senate

Lawmakers: STOP Accepting Campaign Cash from Sallie Mae

The student debt crisis is a prime example of why it is so vitally important to get the money out of politics. Since 2011, Sallie Mae has spent over $5 million on lobbying against the best interest of of countless student borrowers and the U.S. taxpayers.

With the removal of bankruptcy protections from both federal and private student loans, lenders such as Sallie Mae are able to offer loans with virtually no risk. To make matters worse, Sallie Mae also owns many of the collection companies that collect on defaulted student loans. Once a student defaults, as much as 25% can be added to the principal, allowing Sallie Mae to make more money if a borrower defaults.

At a time when college tuition is skyrocketing and 1 out of 5 borrowers are now defaulting (leaving the taxpayer on the hook for the bill), student lending executives should not be rewarded for fleecing the taxpayers. Companies such as Sallie Mae are destroying our higher education system, our democracy, and the lives of millions.

The ever-growing student debt crisis will never be solved as long as those whose duty it is to protect the taxpayers are in the pocket of the nation’s largest student loan company.

For these reasons, we, the undersigned are demanding that our lawmakers stop accepting money from student lenders such as Sallie Mae.

For more information, please visit: http://studentdebtcrisis.org/lawmakers-should-stop-accepting-campaign-cash-from-sallie-mae-additional-information/

Why is this important?

Higher education in the U.S. is being hijacked by vast amounts of cash flooding the campaign coffers of those who purport to represent us. Thanks to endless lobbying and limitless cash that has been showered upon members of Congress, including and especially House Speaker John Boehner, student loans have been stripped of all basic consumer protections. As long as our leaders in Washington continue to line their pockets with Sallie Mae's money, student loan borrowers will continue to get the shaft.