Chris Christie doesn't understand the meaning of the word free

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/week-transcript-gov-chris-christie/story?id=31678805&page=3

But the idea of free college for everybody, there's nothing free in this world. We need to earn what we get.

Now in what way does Christie's need for the existence of endless crippling student debt correlate with the need for the next generation to have an education? I guess Christie is right that there is nothing "free" in this world. However, the students in countries (like ours prior to Reagan) with more heavily financed higher education don't get something for free. Those students have to go to class, learn, and receive grades just like the one else. Christie seems to imply in free college land students would just get diplomas pooped out to them. In what way wouldn't they earn it? Do kids that spend more now for their education EARN their degree more? There is something of the sadomasochistic about this idea of education. You're not really learning unless Christie sees your crippling trail of debt. If you aren't poor and getting poorer then sorry you're just not trying to learn. I mean college isn't supposed to be like that 82,000$ of tax payer money Christie spent on food at football games. No pain, no gain when it comes to education. We need a tough, poor workforce for the 21st century. It doesn't matter that our GDP is somewhat linked to our educated workforce. I mean those capitalist companies that will be hiring your heavily educated butt do seem to be getting something for nothing in this whole process at the moment...

What is his solution?

We have grant programs that are very broadly used. We have loan programs that are very broadly used

No offense to Christie, but isn't the whole argument right now the fact that the existing programs are completely failing the average American. People know that these programs exist. They also know what these programs are doing to students and our economy. His solution is simply stating something that exists and people are trying to reform as if he doesn't understand the problem at all (probably because he doesn't.) I mean throw us a freaking bone Christie with a totally never going to be supported by GOP plan of lower interest rates or no interest college loans which the country could totally afford at least... nope not even that. But don't worry there is another solution beyond more of the same.

alternative is we have to start to put market forces on these college costs.

Sure, because right now there aren't hundreds of private options outside those state schools that are helping to keep the cost down. Surely these private schools and the magic middle finger of the market forces are out there making school affordable right now since they've existed since even before this country was founded.

George, you know, I pay for two college tuitions right now, one at Princeton and one at Notre Dame. And I can tell you that they're the most opaque bills you'll ever see in your life. If you got that bill for dinner with that little of that detail, you wouldn't pay it. You'd send it back. Yet for college, we pay it

Oh noes, those damn private schools might be gouging Christie. You can't trust anything these days even Christie's solution to our college affordability problem. Apparently their receipts are more difficult to read than the audited receipts Christie returns from a Jets games. DAMN YOU MARKET FORCES. Where's Joe Namath when you need him to decipher Christie's tuition bills for him. Luckily for Notre Dame no matter how much they are screwing Christie, he's willing to pay. Why? Because the noble Republican in him can't wait for another screw by those market forces.

Wait there is still another plan:

And secondly, we need to start to say unbundle that. So if a child doesn't want to pay for all of these different things in college, they should be able to select it. That will tell colleges what they don't need to provide and we shouldn't have to pay for the things that we don't want to use.

Because that's why Americans send their kids to college; for their dear Johnny and Jane to tell the teacher to F' off their going to learn what they want to learn. Sure I want to be pre-med but I find those biology classes a bit icky. I won't be paying for all of that Calculus garbage either. Just get me two semesters of therapeutic touch and I'm ready to go into practice. Forget a Liberal Arts education Christie wants higher education to be more like a smorgasbord. Sure a Liberal Arts education was good enough for Christie's generation, but your kids... they need to down select. It's a tough world out there and you don't need to learn that until you learn it the hard way.

Now according to Christie Hillary Clinton doesn't understand real Americans' concerns: like affordable college access for all Americans. Meanwhile Christie doesn't seem to understand his own concerns on this subject. He doesn't seem to understand that the market forces are screwing him now and more of the same is unlikely to work even though he's unhappy to be screwed by the current system. It is hard to believe the solution to higher education is to teach people less stuff because it is costly and inconvenient. How stupid and out of touch can one person be? Well, technically he's just stupid and out of touch enough to run for president on the GOP ticket. Perhaps he's too over qualified.