President Obama On Paying Off His Student Loans: The VICE News Interview

The biggest financial issue currently facing young Americans is not the decline of manufacturing jobs or the housing collapse, but mounting student debt.

To tackle this issue, VICE hosted a roundtable discussion, moderated by VICE founder Shane Smith, with President Barack Obama and five students who discussed the challenges surrounding student debt and the pursuit of higher education in the US.

In this excerpt, President Obama discusses paying off his own student loans, as well as how student debt can be lowered for today's students.

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[KristianKumpula]

It must suck to have your education depend on your wealth.

[jeffadams]

he talks such high game for not doing anything about it

[Mercifies]

I don't think the government should pay for community college like Obama has suggested, and I say this for a couple reasons. Community college is the least expensive, so students will only see 2500-5000 of debt disappear. Most schools only offer 2 year degrees or programs so you can go to 4 year schools, where you are then met by the majority of student loan debt. I actually feel like it's the cheap way out of saying you are helping cut down student debt when in reality it's minuscule compared to how much people are charged for public schools. You wanna change something? Make it so I'm not spending $20K a year at public schools, and stop encouraging everyone to go to college. People that don't know why they are going to college should not be there in the first place

[NOCSFV]

Free third level education would be a wise investment from the US government: imagine how many great minds aren't being made the most of, or the potential discoveries in science and medicine that are hiding in the brains of people who can't afford to go to college. They could learn a lot from European countries.

[VICENews]

In this excerpt, President Obama discusses paying off his own student loans, as well as how student debt can be lowered for today's students.

[bernadettedelacruz]

I would like to see a round table discussion with working young people who have graduated with a college degree and older adults that age range 35+ . My friends and myself who have degrees have experienced some sort of bad mouthing or discrimination for having higher education in the work place. Typically, adults with no higher education but have worked twice as hard to obtain the same higher position as a recent college graduate have made contradictory comments. I feel adults who have encouraged the youth to attend college and achieve a college degree are upset by the effects of higher education. Graduates that have entered the working field are now being shamed for achieving what we have always been told to do all along. I believe this is an undiscussed topic that has resulted from the public push to attend and graduate from college.

[parkerfamily]

Im surprised he wasn't bust drinking beer and playing golf on my tax dollar. ~Richard Parker

[johndanielson]

He graduated from Columbia in 83 and Harvard in 91. It took him almost 20 years to pay it off?!

[hackneo]

Here's my idea, perform federal service and then you'd be allowed to even qualify for a loan.

[rohangaikwad]

What people don't understand is there are lot of moving parts in the economy, the president is accountable for many things. He can't just wave a magic wand and get rid of your student loans. Appreciate that he is open to have a free dialogue like this and considers himself a part of the challenge.

[JohnDoe-ktyb]

If the government would get their sticky hands out of college loans then it wouldn't be nowhere near as bad as it is today.

[UrbanTiger]

Learn a trade. Street pharmacist or pimp. Lmao!

[RoughCutErik]

President Obama's last comment was spot on! But does this cover vocational schools? I am a student of The Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising. This could help someone like myself tremendously.

[xlus]

He seems to really care and he is offering some really good advice. Graduate on time!

[RiotHouseLP]

There sure are a lot of bobbing heads in this video.  When the facts are that student tuition rates have skyrocketed since Obama nationalized the student loan program.  Kids coming out of college are now more in debt from it than ever before and lets face it, the job market stinks.  Let me sit down and have a chit chat with the President, I would ask far more important hardline questions than VICE is posing to this President (most of us would actually).  That being said there are some awesome journalists working for VICE who are pulling the weight of Shane Smith and the rest of the sell outs at the top.

[geoffreyrobinson]

Government subsidizes students taking on debt. Colleges are able to keep raising tuition. People wonder why students take on so much debt.

[seanmehegan]

I'm going to owe 40, 000 when I get out of school in 2 years. It would have been 80 if the government didn't offset ridiculous tuition.

[latina.montalvo]

vice news needs to do a report on why so many wal-marts are closing then one week later filled with military tanks. i live 30 min away from one and thats scary !!

[borg]

If you have to take out student loans, which is the best loan to take out?

[vothry]

And why am I being charged 7% interest?