State of State: Can Promise be kept?

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) -- Among the hundreds who came to the Capitol on Wednesday to protest the State of the State address and government in general were college students.

Many felt they had the proverbial rug pulled out from under them last year when the Promise Scholarship was pulled from the budget.

"It's really affected students and it's really affected the state of this economy," said Ben Lazarus, a Central Michigan University

student and founder of the Web site, nobrokenpromise.com.

"A lot of students are debating whether they should continue their college education," Lazarus said. "Some are considering dropping out of school.

"We want to make sure legislators hear the stories of the students they've betrayed and how that scholarship money has really
affected them."

But Gov. Jennifer Granholm said the state will find the money for the scholarships this year. She wants to tie it to another promise, that students will remain in-state after graduation.

So, it appears the students' concerns were answered by Granholm. Or were they?

The reaction of Senate Majority Leader Mike Bishop seemed to indicate otherwise, as during the speech, he put his arms up and shook his head at Granholm's announcement.

Other Republicans put Bishop's nonverbals into words.

"She did not identify how she's going to deal with this huge, huge defecit," Kentwood Senator Bill Hardiman said. "Instead, she talked (about) adding back programs."

Granholm will outline details on the Promise Scholarship when she unveils her budget next Thursday, she said. It's a plan that is expected to run up a $1.7 billion deficit.

And that is where Republicans say the reality of the Promise -- and other spending proposals from the governor -- will play out.

"I don't know how she's going to pay for it, balance the budget, without raising taxes," Hardiman said. "And that's the concern."