More in the cross-post on the MRC's NewsBusters blog.
Wrapping up an interview with actor Tom Hanks on Wednesday's NBC Today, co-host Matt Lauer took time to promote a January op-ed Hanks wrote for The New York Times praising "free" community college: "I read this op-ed you wrote recently....I love that. Why was it so important for you to get that message out there?"
Hanks replied: "I'm going to tell you right now that if I hadn't had two years of debt-free time in order to discover who I was and figure out what the world was about, I don't think I'd be here talking to you today. And I must say, a free opportunity to go to a very excellent place in order to learn about yourself and learn about the world."