Alpharetta’s Punam Singh has one child in high school and another who is a college freshman. Singh is also paying off a second student loan for her second graduate degree.
It’s no surprise she wants to hear how Democratic White House hopefuls plan to address rising college tuition.
When responding to an AJC.com survey of what readers want to learn about during Wednesday night’s Democratic presidential debate in Atlanta, Singh said, “I worry about how I am going to pay the tuition.”
Singh will be one of a set of millions of eyes squarely focused on 10 Democratic presidential candidates who will be at Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta.
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A survey respondent who declined to be identified would ask U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders “how they plan to pay for their expensive proposals on healthcare and student loan debt.
“I’m still paying back student loans and expect to be until I die,” the respondent said. “I finished grad school 20 years ago. I’ve probably paid back more than $60,000, which is more than I borrowed, but income and layoffs impacted my ability to pay and the interest has piled up. I have paid up to $700 per month.”
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Health care was another major issue of concern to survey respondents. Big Canoe, Georgia, resident Brian Roberts wants to hear specifically from former Vice President Joe Biden and U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris about their health care plans because, he said, “The nuts and bolts of any health plan need to be easily understood by voters.”
Kathy Simpson of Powder Springs, Georgia, would ask Sanders, Warren and Biden about their plans to address Alzheimer's as a national public health crisis.
“There is a national plan to address Alzheimer's, but Americans do not yet understand, nor do our elected officials understand, the cost to the taxpayer and to the lives of the 5.4 million Americans and their families of this devastating disease,” she said.
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The site of Wednesday’s debate is a concern to this unidentified survey respondent. “This debate would not be held at Tyler Perry Studios if not for a sweetheart deal aided by [former Atlanta Mayor Kasim] Reed and [current Mayor Keisha Lance] Bottoms for Perry to buy a former U.S. military base and state legislators supporting an enormous tax break for the film industry. Atlanta's current and former mayor have directed hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars toward the billionaire owners of the Atlanta Hawks, Atlanta Falcons and Tyler Perry Studios.
“What is your position on government-directed corporate benefits?”
Larry Kludt is particularly interested in how Warren would work with corporate America if she’s elected president “because she tends to talk about corporate America as the enemy.”
»READ: Atlanta Democratic debate: The major issues in Georgia
The current national focus on Ukraine and President Donald Trump’s impeachment hearings are of interest to Milton, Georgia, resident Tony Stewart. He would ask Biden, “what specific attributes did Hunter Biden bring to the Ukrainian oil company, Barisma, that justified his almost five-year, $50,000 to $83,000 monthly salary for serving on its board of directors?”
Finally, money is an issue always on the minds of voters, as Mike Burke of Cumming, Georgia, wanted to know from each of the candidates: “What five things in America would you improve on WITHOUT using more money to address the opportunity?
“Because history shows the only answer any politician has is to improve something is to spend more money, and then never evaluate whether spending more money worked.”
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