Obama offers help with student debt
ATLANTA – President Barack Obama says college affordability isn’t just important for students, but for the nation as well.
Obama told thousands gathered at Georgia Tech Tuesday that he is trying to make it easier for them to pay back student loans. He is aiming to clamp down on the private companies that service federal student debt.
Obama’s action requires loan companies to better inform borrowers about their repayment options and delinquent payments. Obama is also telling loan servicers to apply extra payments first to the highest-interest loans, helping students pay off debt quicker.
Senators back bill to help pot industry
WASHINGTON – Two Democratic senators and a possible Republican presidential candidate joined forces Tuesday to push a bill to remove federal prohibitions on medical marijuana in 23 states where it’s already legal.
Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Democrats Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Cory Booker of New Jersey said their unusual coalition is a sign of growing acceptance of medical marijuana.
The lawmakers introduced a bill intended to eliminate uncertainty surrounding marijuana use in states and the District of Columbia that allow it for medicinal purposes. The bill also would allow banks to provide checking accounts and other financial services to marijuana dispensaries.
Greece demanding German reparations
ATHENS, Greece – The radical left-led Greek government insisted Tuesday that the debt-ridden country has never been fully compensated by Germany for its brutal World War II Nazi occupation, linking the issue with Greece’s fraught bailout negotiations.
Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said a 1960 reparation deal with Germany did not cover key Greek demands, including payments for wrecked infrastructure, war crimes and the return of a forced loan exacted from occupied Greece.
British teen girls won’t be prosecuted
LONDON – Three British schoolgirls who traveled to Syria to join the Islamic State group won’t be prosecuted for terrorism if they return, a senior British police officer said Tuesday.
Police chiefs also defended their handling of the case, denying a lawmaker’s allegation that the failure to stop the teens was “a huge blow” to the credibility of the force.
Associated Press
