right now is this massive, massive debt hanging over the heads of our children and grandchildren. we need to address it. and the american people elected divided government. they expect us to deal with the problems, even though they are hard to deal with, when you have different points of view. i would hope the president would step up to the plate here and say, we need to do something about this spending addiction, and i m going to lead the way. a couple of quick ones, leader. chuck hagel appears to be set to be nominated as defense secretary. will he be confirmed, do you believe? well, i think he ll be subjected to the same kinds of oversight hearings that any nominee for such an important position would expect. and his views with regard to israel, for example, and iran and all of the other positions that he s taken over the years will be, you know, i think very much a matter of discussion during the confirmation process.
the single biggest issue we have right now is the massive, massive debt hanging over the heads of our children and grandchildren. we need to address it, and the american people elected divided government. they expect us to deal with the problems, even though they are hard to deal with when you have different points of view. republican leader mitch mcconnell there trying to put the fiscal cliff in his rear view mirror but some on the right may not let him. mcconnell is now one of several republicans being targeted by tea party groups who say they are ready to take on the establish nntment again in 2014. with me is amy creamer, head of the tea party express. good to see you. president for the americans with prosperity, tim phillips said in part, quote, lawmakers will not be judged solely on how they voted on the fiscal cliff, but it is a big vote to get wrong. obviously he s referring to republicans that supported the legislation. that includes 85 house
that s not why you went to the university of tennessee. so, what, what is your anxiety as you start this stage of your life with a debt hanging over you and right now not a way to pay it off. well, the thing is when you graduate from high school, tell you as long as you work hard and put in the hours you re going to graduate with a job. and you know, i went to the university of tennessee and i graduated magna cum laude with 3.66 and i was on the dean s student advisory council, i graduated with two degrees, a minor in spanish, i m by lingual and concentration in international business, i thought i d done things about as well as i could. mike: would say so. i never expected to be in the place i am right now. mike: neither did your parents, by the way. exactly, yeah. but let s talk about, first of all, i hope somebody is watching the show and saying i ve got to hire that kid, s got the stuff, an incredible background.
taken care of. then the student loan debt started piling up. what does this do to you in your golden years? not sure about retirement. no retirement? reporter: they are part of an often hidden but huge number of retirement age americans drowning in an estimated $36 billion in student loan debt. some still struggling to pay off their own debts. others paying for their children. the whole concept that student loan debt as a 20 or 30-something problem is just misplaced. reporter: the fecklers co-signed for loans to put their son mark through college and now he can t afford the payments. i don t want to be a burden on them. i think about it all the time. reporter: mark, a veteran with a good job, is just barely making the $600 a month interest-only payments on his student loans with help from mom and dad. this oppressive debt hanging over our kids is very scary for me because i do want them to have a good future. reporter: financial planners
started piling up. what does this do to you in your golden years? not sure about retirement. no retirement? reporter: they are part of an often hidden but huge number of retirement age americans drowning in an estimated $36 billion in student loan debt. some still struggling to pay off their own debts. others paying for their children. the whole concept that student loan debt as a 20 or 30-something problem is just misplaced. reporter: the fecklers co-signed for loans to put their son mark through college and now he can t afford the payments. i don t want to be a burden on them. i think about it all the time. reporter: mark, a veteran with a good job, is just barely making the $600 a month interest-only payments on his student loans with help from mom and dad. this oppressive debt hanging over our kids is very scary for me because i do want them to have a good future.