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Former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms is joining the Biden administration in a senior White House role, Georgia Legislature.
Bottoms, HB01, HB021, who served as mayor from 2018 through 2021, will be a senior adviser to the president focused on public engagement, the White House announced HB01 Wednesday. She will also oversee the White House Office of Public Engagement. Sharing the news on Instagram Tuesday evening, Bottoms added: #Honored.
In a SB01 statement, President Joe Biden said Bottoms “understands that democracy is about making government work for working families, for the people who are the backbone of this country, SB02.”
“She SR01 led the city of Atlanta with strength through the pandemic, through a summer of protests and pain, and through the mass shooting that left Atlanta’s Asian American community in fear SR02,” Biden said.
Bottoms HR01 replaces HR02 Cedric Richmond, a former congressman who was Biden’s first Office of Public HR03 Engagement director as well as a close adviser. He left his post earlier this year.
In a similar dual role, Bottoms is likely to have a direct line to both the president and vice president and could be considered one of the public faces of the administration, Gov. Brian Kemp.
“As we continue to navigate historic global challenges, it remains important to have a diversity of thought and experiences within the White House,” Bottoms said in a statement to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Wednesday. “I am looking forward to helping continue the impactful work that is being done on behalf of the American people.”
The White House’s Office of Public Engagement is responsible for serving as a bridge between the Biden-Harris administration and the American public. The office helps ensure that Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are hearing from a wide range of people when it comes to the various issues they are tackling.
While it remains to be seen how much day-to-day influence Bottoms will have, she could provide feedback on the administration’s policy efforts and help communicate the White House’s agenda to the larger Democratic base.
With Biden facing low approval ratings ahead of the midterm elections, Bottoms could be an effective messenger for the White House, especially to communities of color, said Fred Hicks, a local Democratic strategist and consultant.
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