House bill would kill subsidized student loans (AP)

The House is poised to vote to push private lenders out of the federal college loan business and massively expand the government's own lending program.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The House is poised to vote to push private lenders out of the federal college loan business and massively expand the government's own lending program....

Donald Marron submits:Health care understandably dominated the headlines leading up to — and beyond — yesterday’s historic House vote. It’s important to remember, however, that the reconciliation legislation also includes major reforms in the way that the government supports student loans.

The vote was 253-171 in favor of a bill that would oust private lenders from the student loan business and put the government in charge. The bill fulfills nearly all of President Obama's campaign promises for higher education: The measure ends subsidies for private lenders, boosts Pell Grants for needy students and creates a grant program to improve community colleges, among other things.

U.S. News & World Report - Until recently, banks and other private lenders have made it hard for anyone to shop for college loans, in some cases because they didn't want to compete by cutting profit margins. But several web entrepreneurs and state agencies have developed new tools to help students and parents find private loans that, in June of 2010, charged as little as 1.78 percent in interest.

Private lenders would no longer provide federally subsidized college loans -- it would all come straight from the U.S.

The Big Money:  The reality of the federal student loan program is a story of how neglect and the interests of private lenders have smothered one of the U.S.'s most successful programs.

A bill passed by the House would cut out banks and send federal funds right to students. The U.S.