ATLANTA — Editors Note: This interview was taped during Tom Perez’s visit to Atlanta on April 24, 2024.
In recent months, President Joe Biden has been very busy on the campaign trail touting the accomplishments of his administration since taking office in 2021. Part of his administration’s campaign strategy leading into November is to educate voters on the progress America has seen under a Biden presidency.
In a recent visit to Atlanta, Biden’s Senior advisor Tom Perez, who is not affiliated with the campaign, told 11Alive that the administration can “always do more” when it comes to educating the public on what they’ve accomplished during Biden’s time in the oval office. Perez touched on several topics such as the President's promise to lower prescription drug prices and cap insulin costs.
“There’s been more transformational change in these last three years, than in any moment certainly in my lifetime,” Perez touted. “If you are a diabetic and you need your insulin, thanks to Joe Biden, there is now a $35 cap if your Grandma has diabetes. What the President wants to do is make sure it’s $35 for everyone not just for seniors."
Watch the full conversation below:
Perez’s visit to Atlanta included a stop at the newly renovated Emory Hillandale Hospital and a tour of Atlanta’s beltline. The $11 million hospital renovation was funded, in part, by the American Rescue Plan Act, and the Beltline project received a $25 million Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation under the Biden administration.
Despite these accomplishments touted by the Biden administration, a Marist College from March 20 poll showed 52% of Georgia residents disapprove of the work Biden is doing on the job.
The President was met with some protests during his recent commencement ceremony at Morehouse College. Students and faculty vocalized their concerns about how the President is handling the war in Gaza. It came as Biden made his pitch to those in the Black community -- especially Black men -- about how he is the President fighting for them. Perez said equity has always been top of mind for Biden.
“One of the first executive actions that he signed was an executive order on equity because he understood that our nation’s history, you know, 'we the people, to form a more perfect union,'" Perez said.
"We’ve had a lot of imperfections and he understood that we had an opportunity, a once-in-a-generation opportunity to correct that," Perez continued. "That’s why that executive action was very intentional to say, as we invest in infrastructure -- whether it’s highway infrastructure, human capital or other -- that we do everything moving forward through that equity lens."
“We recognize that there are people who have understandable questions about decisions we have made and the President has never been shy about wanting to have that dialogue, not simply with people who he is like-minded, but people who have questions and concerns,” Perez concluded.
Catch up on the latest episodes of The Georgia Vote, as well as our 1-on-1 interviews with political news makers in the state. Watch new episode of our political show Sundays after "Meet the Press" at 11 a.m. on 11Alive.