(WASHINGTON D.C.) — On Thursday, USDA Secretary nominee Brooke Rollins faced numerous questions from Senators during her confirmation hearing before the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry. Those questions ranged from trade and potential farm payments to biofuels and the issue of ag labor amid mass deportations planned by the Trump administration.
Senate Ag Committee Chairman John Boozman (R-AR) offered opening comments that pressed Rollins on the current ag trade deficit of nearly $45 billion and potential Trump administration policies that could have a negative impact on U.S. agriculture. Rollins suggested that more farm payments may be the administration’s answer to another trade war. “We are prepared to execute something similar if approved, if confirmed, but also working with the White House to ensure that we can close those holes for our farmers and ranchers,” according to remarks from Rollins.
Also on the topic of trade, Senator Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) questioned Rollins about her plans to hold America’s trading partners accountable, the role of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in creating new export markets, and the importance of the biofuels market for agricultural producers. In response to Senator Fischer, Rollins said in part that “that $45 billion, what’s remarkable about that is 42 percent of that is just in the last year. So, the wheels are falling off, and it is very, very important that the wheels get put back on as soon as possible.”
Rollins also said one of her top priorities will be getting out $10 billion in disaster payments Congress ok’d in December. She said it would be “a fast and furious effort to ensure that we move that economic aid out.”
Other priorities include fighting animal diseases, modernizing USDA, supporting rural communities, cutting red tape, and helping Congress pass a new farm bill, but while sticking by the GOP stance on SNAP work requirements saying that “I do believe in work requirements, I do think they’re important.”
Another issue that Senators pressed Rollins on was biofuels, with many Midwestern lawmakers challenging Rollins on her past defense of fossil fuels. Rollins was asked multiple times about issues related to the 45Z Clean Fuels Production Tax Credit and she said that she would work with the nominees at EPA and the Treasury on that credit.
In responding to Senator Roger Marshall (R-KS), Rollins said that “My role, if confirmed, is to defend all of American agriculture, so I believe, Senator, that you and others who hail from the states where this is a driver for your farmers and your ranchers and your economy, should feel very confident that you have a friend and a defender in this current administration to make sure this continues. 45Z obviously – my friend Scott Bessent, if confirmed over in the Treasury, will be working on that, that’s in his purview, but I will ensure that he has the data and the voices and the opinions around him to make the right decision.”
Rollins also reiterated that Trump’s executive order on energy also included language supporting E15 during her statements on biofuels.
And when it came to the hot-button issue of mass deportations and concerns about ag labor under the Trump Administration, Rollins echoed her support for the policies set forth by President Trump. “The president’s vision of a secure border and a mass deportation at a scale that matters, is something that I support,” said Rollins.
Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) pressed Rollins on deportation concerns surrounding farm labor and mentioned that some 40% of agricultural workers in the U.S. are undocumented. Durbin asked Rollins if we can expect raids on farms and immigrant farmworkers to which Rollins again echoed her support for the President’s vision.
Rollins did say however that she would work with Congress and the Department of Labor to look at reforms to the H-2A program for migrant farm labor.
You can view various portions of the Senate hearing or the full hearing from C=Span via videos located below.