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Agriculture usually worries too much… about the weather and crop impacts, of course, but also about a host of other things, many of which they have little to no control over. Such is the case with pending Cabinet picks by President-elect Donald Trump, including USDA and the US Trade Representative (USTR). The same people or news outlets who were so awful in forecasting elections are some of the same people who have cussed and discussed various selections. Frankly, you should have better things to do than listen to this sector. We gave up guessing Cabinet selections years ago. Instead, we like to analyze the choices and what she or he may mean for key topics ahead. This time around, Trump is said to be thinking about picking a Democrat for the top USDA post. If that is correct, this would make the Deputy and Undersecretary positions more important than they usually are, as they would be more prone to have Republican contacts. So get ready for that if a Democrat is announced. Cabinet selections face several so-called “requirements” to meet the elitist media tests: they must “look like America” and include several minorities (the definition of several is murky at best). Cabinets often are based on having enough members that signal broad regional diversity. This could be why late in the game former Idaho Governor Butch Otter entered the USDA sweepstakes. And it looks like Trump has fallen into the silly development that President Obama began – if you are a lobbyist, stay away. That has or will likely rule out some very good potential candidates. As for USTR, the selection is reported to be down to just a few choices. It is widely known, or should be, that the top trade person in the Trump Cabinet will be Wilbur Ross, who will head the Commerce Department if confirmed as is expected. That does not make the coming USTR announcement less newsworthy. If the USTR slot is filled by Robert Lighthizer it would be an important announcement. Why? He would be like having the feisty Trump as USTR. It’s an understatement to say Lighthizer is aggressive, both in public private meetings, with the use of four-letter words frequently bandied about. He is also aggressive when it comes to taking on perceived China trade and currency issues. So stay tuned if he is announced. If he is not the USTR, we will analyze the person selected once announced because until then, we have too many other important things to write about rather than just filling up space like some hype-prone publications.
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NOTE: This column is copyrighted material; therefore reproduction or retransmission is prohibited under U.S. copyright laws. | |
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