Never let the data get in the way of your preferred ideology must be their motto. I'm glad the #RealCollege research is making it much harder to get away with these fact-free assertions.
Because I had to eat, put a roof over my head and gas in my car to get to school--the latter for when public transportation or access to dorm living was no longer available.
In undergrad (from '99-'03), I received less than $10k/yr in federal student loans and federal work study to cover 3 semesters (fall/spring/summer) of full-time tuition and fees, room & board, books, and a meal plan.