Government

California's governor lays out deep "trigger cuts" to higher education if a tax hike fails in November. But business leaders and one faculty union appear unlikely to back the tax plan.

In the first weeks of the 2012 campaign, Obama and Romney focused not on economic or foreign issues but on the student loan interest rate. Could student debt play a significant role in this year's elections?

A survey suggests the 2012 electorate in swing states cares more about education than it does about the deficit or taxes.

He questions whether higher ed is necessary for everyone, and calls colleges godless, but in the Senate, the candidate had a history of supporting colleges.

So far, the Republican front-runner has said little about colleges. But as governor, he quarreled with the UMass president, and more recently he has praised for-profit colleges.

Republican candidate repeats claim that Obama is "snob" for wanting all Americans to go to college, but in 2006 he seemed to endorse the same idea. And in 2008, he said Satan had his greatest success in academe.

President Obama lays out details for his plan to hold colleges accountable for rising prices, with ramifications beyond the election this fall.