Gov debate and the high cost of college

I caught Richard Moore’s “Is Bev Perdue a Democrat we can trust?’ TV ad last night.

As for the Democratic gubernatorial debate, here’s what jumped out at me:

On a question regarding making college affordable, Moore said the state had raised tuition and fees too much at UNC system campuses.

“This is another place where Beverly and I have a real difference,” Moore said. “Beverly, over the last 12 years, you voted for numerous tuition increases.”

Perdue called Moore’s attack “just one more example of the politics of yesteryear,” saying that she had worked to make tuition assistance available.

She also pointed out that when Moore was a member of the legislature, he too voted for tuition increases.

“It is a real difference between being a freshman legislator and voting for a 3 percent cost of living tuition raise … versus being the appropriations chair and leading the fight for a 24 percent increase in tuition,” Moore said.

With that in mind, Thomas Sowell, appearing on today’s N&R editorial page, notes that the high cost of college and tuition assistance go hand in hand:

Those who want the government to provide subsidies to help meet the high cost of college seem not to consider whether government subsidies might have contributed to the high cost of college in the first place.