Reuters: Barack Obama Announces Fresh Aid For US War Veterans

President Barack Obama announced new executive action to help veterans on Monday, marking the latest step in a White House "can't wait" campaign designed to show him acting on jobs while Congress stalls. Joined by leading veterans' associations in the White House Rose Garden, Obama also sought to push congressional Republicans to pass two tax credits proposed proposed in his $447bn jobs bill. "Bold action from Congress is ultimately the only way we're going to put hun- dreds of thousands of Americans back to work, Obama said. "Standing up for our veterans is not a Democratic responsibility or a Republican responsibility. It is an American responsibility." With polls showing Americans deeply worried about the state of the economy and his own approval ratings stuck in the low forties, Obama must bring down the jobless rate to be confident of winning a second White House term in the election next year. Republicans say Obama, a Democrat, is playing politics. They point out that legislation passed by the Republican-controlled House of Representatives to help veterans find work is being held-up in the Democratic-controlled Senate.