Washington's Cold Shoulder for Defrauded Students and Soldiers

http://smirkingchimp.com/thread/richard-eskow/56338/washingtons-cold-shoulder-for-defrauded-students-and-soldiers

Washington's Cold Shoulder for Defrauded Students and Soldiers
by Richard Eskow | June 11, 2014 - 9:12am

President Obama signed an executive order Monday limiting student debt payments to 10 percent of their income, telling an audience in the East Room of the White House that he and his wife only paid off their law school loans about 10 years ago. "This is why I feel so strongly about this," the president said. "This is why I'm passionate about it."

~snip~

Loan Sharks

According to a Consent Order filed in court last month, Navient's fraudulent behavior included cheating active-duty service members by concealing from them their eligibility for lower-cost loans. Navient also refused to lower their interest rates after being notified in writing to do so. In some cases its employees lied to service members, telling them they needed to have served overseas to quality for lower-cost loans. The evidence against Navient led to Justice Department and FDIC involvement, and the matter was finally settled in court on May 13.

~snip~

The bad news? It was yet another one of those genteel Justice Department/regulator deals where no individual wrongdoers were brought to account, shareholders must pay the cost of these individuals' misdeeds, and the lawbreaking companies "neither admit nor deny" their crimes -- in this case, against young people who served in the military and were aspiring to improve themselves through higher education.

That "neither admit nor deny" clause allows Navient to remain eligible for future government contracts. The Huffington Post's Shahien Nasipour reports that the Education Department chose Navient as one of four finalists for a contract that is currently valued at $880 million. Navient's finalist status was made public on May 30, less than three weeks after the Justice Department/FDIC settlement.