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In weekly address, Obama promotes action to protect veterans
(CBS News) In his weekly address, President Obama highlighted a new executive order that protects service members and veterans from predatory educational institutions, including for-profit schools.
The president said his new directive will protect service members from "bad actors" looking to profit from service members' financial benefits.
"The sad truth is that there are people out there who are less interested in helping our men and women in uniform get ahead and more interested in making a buck," Mr. Obama said. "They bombard potential students with emails and pressure them into making a quick decision. Some of them steer recruits towards high-interest loans and mislead them about credit transfers and job placement programs. "
The president traveled to Fort Stewart, Georgia on Friday to announce the new executive order, which requires schools to provide service members with a fact-sheet on student loans called "Know Before You Owe." The president's directive, which does not need congressional approval, requires these institutions to provide additional counseling during deployment or base transfers. It also restricts aggressive recruiters from bases.
"It's disgraceful. And even though the vast majority of schools do the right thing, we need to guard against the bad actors who don't," the president said. "We need to make sure they have all the tools they need to make an informed decision when it comes to picking the right program."
The president credited the post-World War II G.I. Bill and the post-September 11 G.I. Bill for helping service members receive an education. He said his new executive order will provide additional assistance.
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Leigh Ann Caldwell
Leigh Ann Caldwell is a political reporter for CBSNews.com.
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