Obama Says Gov't Will Pay For War Vets College Tuition

THE PRESIDENT: Hello. Thank you. Please, have a seat. Good morning, everybody.

AUDIENCE: Good morning.

THE PRESIDENT: It is wonderful to see all of you and wonderful to have one of the best partners that anybody could have in elected office, our Vice President, Joe Biden -- thrilled to have him here. (Applause.)

I want to thank Staff Sergeant Miller for the gracious introduction. I want to thank President Merten for his hospitality. There are a couple of people here who deserve all the credit, because they got a very tough bill done -- and part of the reason they were able to get it done was just because of their extraordinary personal credibility. These are -- one is new to the Senate and one had been there a while, and yet together they formed an incredibly formidable team. They're both class acts. Please give a big round of applause to Virginia's own, John Warner and Jim Webb. (Applause.)

I know that we've got a number of member[s] of Congress who are here and I want to thank them all for their outstanding work. I want to point out that Senator Mark Warner could not be here, but we appreciate him. We've got the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, a hero in his own right, General Eric Shinseki, and I want everybody to please acknowledge him. (Applause.) And of the original bill sponsors who could not be here today, we've got Senator Chuck Hagel, Senator Frank Lautenberg, Representative Harry Mitchell, Representative Bobby Scott, Representative Ginny Brown-Waite, and Representative Peter King. All of them worked hard along with the delegation that is present, so we are very grateful to all of them.

I want to join all of today's speakers in thanking those of you who worked so hard to make this occasion possible. But above all, I want to pay tribute to the veterans who are now advancing their dreams by pursuing an education.

Obviously I'm honored to be here, and to renew our commitment to ensure that the men and women who wear the uniform of the United States of America get the ...

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• GI
• Bill
• War
• Iraq
• College
• Tuition
• soldiers

[Skyman46]

It's great to see a president who respects our veterans for once, unlike psycho boy bush.

[lornesymes]

I'm using the Post 9/11 G.I. Bill, and it's the most awsome tool for anyone that served honorably in the Armed Service to get an undergrad degree/certification with little to no cost. I LOVE IT!!

[MrSniper1177]

@pathfinderdaddy Im struggling to pay my tuition right now... thought the Guard would have paid my tuition and they didn't... so now im stuck alone picking up the pieces.

[sgtd69]

sounds good when u get paid???????????? I still havent got paid and rent is due

[localbandss]

socialist

[lornesymes]

Thats the difference between a soldier(beauracracy) and a profiteer(capitalist). Most of the blackwater operatives are prior military. Also Active duty is 28 times more difficult than Selective reserve. That is why the AD G.I. bill is different than the G.I. bill SR. I can attest to this after two six month deployments, and a two month stint in the Middle East in a six year enlistment.

[charlessmyth]

With proper wages, veterans can pay their own college tuition. This would also give the government pause for thought about the interventions it chooses to send Americans, to get involved/killed/mutilated in. At best, this is an example of positive discrimination acting to favour some Americans over others. It is unlikely that, you choose Harvard, and the government will be pick up the bill. But, to be fair, it does not always follow, that government approved colleges, are always worse.

[pathfinderdaddy]

Talk to National Guard troops on their 2nd or 3rd tour about how they can't get their college paid for unless they're active duty, but when they're active they can't attend. Their college should be paid for by the war profiteers, and they should get a cut from the oil and opium money profits. I mean why should the Blackwater mercs be the only soldiers getting rich from fake wars and occupation of nonthreatening countries.