JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Holly Petraeus, wife of CIA Director and former Gen. David Petraeus, and Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi said they learned a lot about the challenges military members face while on a visit to Jacksonville on Wednesday.
Petraeus may look mild-mannered, but she carries a lot of power. She is heading up the new military office of the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection, and given her background with the military in relation to her husband's position, she knows the problems military personnel face.
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For three days, she has been touring local military bases and learning firsthand the problems military men and women are facing. She said the No. 1 concern is housing. Many are behind on their mortgages.
"They have the added problem that they can't hunker down in the house and wait it out," Petraeus said. "They get orders and they have to respond to those military orders. That is what makes it so hard for them. But is there no big pot of money out there to help them, not that I found so far."
Petraeus said the new bureau is trying to find that money by maybe allowing military families to take advantage of government help before they get into trouble.
"Because military, often when they move, it triggers hardship, but they are not yet delinquent," Petraeus said. "And they have been told before they can't access the help that is out there because they are not delinquent."
It's not just housing. Bondi said military families are often the target of scams.
"If you are a member of the military and you see something that says are you being deployed, need money fast, are you being deployed and need to sell fast?" Bondi said. "Be very skeptical. Be very skeptical of these scams."
Bondi said the best thing military members can do is contact the attorney general's office and report the scams so the office can take action. To do so, call 1-866 -9-NO SCAM.