-Today, the major Wall Street
banks are larger than ever,
their profits are soaring,
and their CEOs receive huge
compensation packages.
Our proposal, which costs $2.
2 trillion over 10 years,
will be fully paid for by a tax
on Wall Street speculation,
similar to what exists in dozens
of countries around the world.
The American people
bailed out Wall Street.
Now it is time for Wall Street
to come to the aid of the
middle class of this country.
It is time to hit
the reset button.
Under the proposal
that we introduce today,
all student debt would be
canceled in six months.
By taking this action --
[cheers and applause]
By taking this action,
we not only provide
immediate financial relief
to 45 million Americans
who have $1.
6 trillion in debt, but we will
be improving the entire economy.
Let's be clear --
the Millennial generation
was told
that the only way they would get
the good jobs available
is if they received
a college education.
Unfortunately, that turned out
to be bad advice.
It was wrong.
Since 2000, the cost of
attending a public college
has nearly doubled.
Meanwhile, the bottom 60%
of college graduates
earn less money than those
who graduated college
did 19 years ago,
and wages for the average
college graduate have stagnated.
But today we are in fact
offering a "revolutionary"
proposal.
A proposal that will transform
and improve our country
in many, many ways.
In a highly competitive
global economy,
when we need the best
educated workforce in the world,
this proposal
will make it possible
for every person in America
to get all of the education
they need regardless
of their financial status.
