Obama Pushes Congress to Stop Student Loan Rate Increase

Set to trigger on July 1

President Barack Obama took to the Rose Garden today to urge Congress to stave off an increase in student loan rates now scheduled to occur on July 1.

"We know that the surest path to the middle class is some form of higher education," Obama said. He said Americans now owe more on student loans than on credit cards. He said he and his wife just finally paid off their loans in the last decade and paid more on them than they did on their mortgage.

"We were lucky. We had more resources than many," Obama said. He said the debt is forcing some young people to delay buying cars and houses, which can hurt the economy overall.