Interview with Paul Allen "P.A." Billings on His Radio Show

BILLINGS: Afternoon Jamz has a very, very exclusive interview. We have the current president of this beautiful country, President Joe Biden, on the phone line. How are you doing today, sir?

THE PRESIDENT: Fine. And thanks for doing this in Africa.

BILLINGS: Thank you. Thank you, sir. Thank you, sir. It's like my second home. Nothing like America, but Africa is definitely my second home. You -- you guys been doing a lot of campaigning in Michigan -- a lot of campaigning in Michigan. Why is Michigan so important? And what is at stake for the state of Michigan?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, I think what this -- first of all, Michigan is one of the five states that are going to determine the outcome of the election, based on the electoral votes and based on -- on the way -- how it was a toss up a lot of it is, number one. Number two, it's important because everything's at stake, literally. For example, you're in Africa. You know the guy I'm running against has no interest in working on Africa at all. So much we can do. I used to be chairman of that committee, the Foreign Relations Committee, when I was a young senator, and with the kind of thing you're doing, providing clothes, opportunities, just giving people a shot. And if we help them build their infrastructure -- for example, one of the proposals I have, we're going to build the largest solar facility in the world, and that's [inaudible] to help them deal with their problems and generate energy throughout the continent. We're going to build -- we want to build a railroad all the way across the [inaudible] from the ocean -- from the Atlantic Ocean to the Indian Ocean. There's so much we can do. There's a billion people [inaudible] a billion people.

BILLINGS: Right. Right. Wow, wow. That's -- that's good to hear, Mr. President. Some -- some people have the mindset that their vote doesn't count, that they're just one person, and it doesn't matter. What can you say to them?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, let me tell you. Your -- your vote is your voice. There's been so many elections that have been decided by a single vote, by the way, a single vote. And by the way, had the chance [inaudible] Michigan had there been a change of vote [inaudible] a couple thousand people, would be a different outcome -- who is the president of the United States of America. So, it really does matter. And one of the reasons I ran was trying to unite America. But the MAGA Republicans, who spent [inaudible] this time from the last six years trying to divide America, convince people that they're not -- they have nothing in common. And so, the vote really does count, you know? And because Michiganders turned out to vote in 2020, we made a remarkable progress, lowering prescription drug costs, rebuilding roads and bridges, creating jobs, 800,000 new manufacturing jobs. So much at stake. Democracy, freedom, our economic -- economies on the line. And by the way, the polls open -- I know you're [inaudible] the polls open 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. on -- from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday. And [inaudible] to tell you, listen, go to iwillvote.com to find a polling place because they can make a difference. They can make a gigantic difference.

BILLINGS: Well, President Joe Biden is on the phone line. You know, some people and -- I guess, in our community, some people might ask, what has the Biden and Harris administration done for the Black community? So, you might -- can share some of your accomplishments that we may not be familiar with.

THE PRESIDENT: Well, first of all, you know, I got involved in politics as a kid in Delaware, which was segregated by law because of civil rights. And that's been my -- my passion from the time that I got involved. But, look, there's a lot of things that people may not be aware of. For example, I'm -- single, the people paying -- required the most to get to college and graduate school for the African-American community. Well, guess what? I was able to cancel $138 billion in student debt for more than 3.9 million borrowers. I've then increased Pell Grants with 60% of the Black undergraduates that need to get to school by 900 bucks and expanded it into 1.5 million more students. 610,000 new students from low-income backgrounds. And, look, the other thing is, just think of what we've done. We've created two point [inaudible] more -- there's a lower unemployment rate for Black Americans than any time in American history. Just in the last three years I've become president, more Black families have health care coverage under the ACA. Black child poverty has been cut in half. Home ownership is up. I've contributed -- we've provided $7 billion to HBCUs, which I've been very associated with, and canceled debt. We've increased maximum Pell Grants, etc. But there's a lot -- the basic thing is, when I got elected, I said I wanted an administration to look like [inaudible] America. I have more African-Americans in the cabinet, more African-Americans in my administration than any administration in history. I appointed the first African-American woman to the Supreme Court. It turns out they didn't even know it, but I've appointed more Black women to the -- to the circuits of courts of appeal than every other president combined in American history. It matters. It matters. There's not a damn thing the Black community can't do just [inaudible] give them a shot.

BILLINGS: Well, President, I know you got to roll. When I get -- I'm back in America in a few days. I can't wait. Hopefully, before November, we can get you back on in, and we can have an extended conversation. Just want to let you know, you're talking to the first LPFM, Black-owned LPFM, that was started under President Bill Clinton 22-plus years ago. And so, thank you for being a part of that administration, of that body of lawmakers that made that possible.

THE PRESIDENT: So, by the way, I was a big supporter of Bill Clinton, and I was a significant voice in the judiciary and foreign relations committees because I've been around for a long time when Bill Clinton got elected as a senator.

BILLINGS: Yes, sir.

THE PRESIDENT: And by the way, he and I are going to be campaigning in a couple of days together. He and I and Barack [inaudible]

BILLINGS: Wow, wow. It's an honor, Mr. President. It's an honor to talk to you. God bless you. Looking forward to talking to you again. And thanks to your staff, wonderful people.

THE PRESIDENT: Well, thank you, pal. I look --

BILLINGS: Me too. Me too. Thank you so much. God bless.

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you.