Moore takes on Perdue's plan

Beverly Perdue said that every North Carolina high schooler should be able to go to college.

At a debate this morning, the lieutenant governor touted her "College Promise" plan, which she said would make college more affordable for high schoolers with good grades.

"The state should make an ironclad promise to all kids and their families, if they make good grades and work hard in their communities and stay in school and graduate high school, then tuition money is not going to be a roadblock to getting a college education," she said.

But state Treasurer Richard Moore questioned the plan, saying that he wasn't sure how Perdue proposed to pay for it.

"It's awfully easy on the campaign trail to make a fistful of promises," he said. "The hard part is finding the fistful of dollars to pay for them when the campaign is over with."

After the debate, Perdue spokesman David Kochman said the plan would allow middle-school students to sign a contract that would provide for grants for state college tuition, as long as they get good grades, do community service in high school and stay out of trouble.

"It's not a free ride," he said. "You have to earn it."