Barack Obama has electrified a good portion of the nation’s electorate—especially the youth—with speeches about hope and unity. I can’t lie; I’ve been enthralled by the Illinois Senator’s eloquence. Checking into his plans for higher education, I think that voters can find a few more things to get excited about along with a few questions to ask.

Obama intends to offer a tax credit to “ensure that the first $4,000 of a college education is completely free for most Americans.” He wants to cover tuition for community colleges and cover at least 2/3 of the cost of tuition for the average public college or university. Plus, he wants to get rid of the FAFSA by adjoining it to our annual tax forms—essentially, you’d check a box to apply for financial aid.

Like John Edwards, Obama is suspicious of the government subsidies for banks. He prefers to expand the Federal government’s Direct Loan Program, which he believes will save millions of dollars in subsidies to banks. Those savings would then allow more money to be disbursed to students. However, I’ve read differing views on which is better: guaranteed loans from private banks or direct loans from the Federal government. Some people are saying that the guaranteed loans have become a better deal due to budget cuts, for which ironically Obama voted.

Unfortunately, I’m not convinced that focusing more money into the hands of the government will necessarily get students the financial aid that they need. The government’s track-record for bureaucracy and waste is pretty long. I’m also not sure from where all this tax credit money is going to magically come to help individuals get into college. FYI: Obama is also going to need a lot of money for his health care program. Getting out of Iraq will save some money, but hey, all those retiring Baby Boomers are going to need social security money too?

There’s lots more to talk about for Obama, so come back this Monday for more.