Interview with Tom Price, July 5, 2018

Collection: Two-Party Georgia Oral History Project

Dublin Core

Description

Born on October 8, 1954 in Lansing, Michigan, Tom Price grew up in Dearborn, Michigan, and graduated from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. An orthopedic surgeon, Price moved to Atlanta in 1979 when he began a surgical internship and residency at Emory University Hospital. Price relocated to Roswell in 1984. Following the retirement of Republican Sallie Newbill in 1996, Price won a seat in the Georgia State Senate. He became the Republican Senate Minority Whip in 1998 and Senate Majority Leader in 2002. He won election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2004. Representative Price chaired the House Republican Policy Committee from 2011 to 2013 and the House Budget Committee from 2015 until February 2017 when he was sworn in as U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services. He is married to Betty Price, a former member of the Georgia House of Representatives. Price resides in Roswell.

The interview begins with Price talking about his youth and education in Michigan before turning to his move to Georgia following medical school. He describes Atlanta and its suburbs and talks about becoming politically active in the 1980s. Price discusses his first campaign and time in the Georgia State Senate. Among the topics covered are redistricting and his relationship with Lieutenant Governors Pierre Howard and Mark Taylor. Price talks about the Republicans taking power in 2002 and his work as Georgia State Senate Majority Leader. He reviews the creation of Sandy Springs in considerable detail, his successful 2004 congressional campaign, and his career in the United States House of Representatives. Price briefly discusses his tenure as U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services in the Trump administration. The interview closes with Price’s assessment of Georgia political history, President Donald Trump’s political impact, and the trajectory of the state’s two-party system.

Date

2018-07-05

Identifier

RBRL425TPGA-052

Coverage

Hyperlink Item Type Metadata

Files

Citation

Tom Price and Ashton Ellett, “Interview with Tom Price, July 5, 2018,” UGA Special Collections Libraries Oral Histories, accessed March 29, 2024, https://georgiaoralhistory.libs.uga.edu/RBRL425TPGA/RBRL425TPGA-052.