Commencement

Obama to Navy: Stop the Sexual Assaults

Says the problem undermines the military.

President Obama had a stern message for graduates of the U.S. Naval Academy. Speaking at the school’s commencement Friday, he warned that the sexual-assault problem in the military must be addressed immediately. The growing problem threatens “the trust and discipline that makes our military strong,” he said, arguing that the practice has “no place in the greatest military on earth” and that its status as “the most trusted institution in America” is vulnerable if it isn’t stopped. Unreported sexual assaults in the military soared in 2013—with female soldiers now more likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than killed in combat.