The author has spent much of his working life studying and promoting student loans. As a good liberal Democrat, he spent years arguing for the expansion of the old Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP) which had its roots in Lyndon Johnson's War on Poverty. His professional life included stints working for one of the nonprofit FFELP agencies and being a co-founder of an entirely private nonprofit, non-federal student loan guarantor. In this article, the author argues that it is time to start downsizing the federal student loan programs. His reason for this is primarily to protect students from untenable debt burden. He also thinks a reduction in federal student loans would help to address the issue of out-of-control college costs and the growing national debt. Finally, the author thinks one can not ignore the cost to the government of this explosive growth in the amount of federal student loans on the federal balance sheet.