Trump's pick to lead USDA hasn't returned Vilsack's call

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack called his likely successor at USDA, Brooke Rollins, and left a voicemail — but hasn’t received a response, he told reporters Friday.

“I received her cell phone number from a senator who had visited with her, and I called, I used it immediately, called her and left a message,” Vilsack said. “At any point in time, if she thinks it's appropriate and necessary, and she would like to talk, I'd be more than happy to talk to her.”

President-elect Donald Trump announced Nov. 23 that he will nominate Rollins to be his Agriculture secretary. The co-founder and leader of the Trump-allied America First Policy Institute think tank served as acting director of the Domestic Policy Council in his first term and is close to Trump, but she has little formal agriculture policy experience.

Nevertheless, Rollins is expected to be confirmed and has begun meeting with Senators on Capitol Hill.

“We want Ms. Rollins … to be successful,” Vilsack said Friday, pointing to the Agriculture secretary’s vast responsibilities at USDA, which employs roughly 100,000 people and oversees massive federal nutrition programs, disease prevention systems and food safety.

Specifically, he noted that the department is currently dealing with a spreading outbreak of H5N1 strain of the bird flu virus, and the rising risk of screw worm, a disease that can be fatal to cattle, crossing into the U.S. from Mexico.

“This is a big job,” said Vilsack. She has a “very important asset,” he added, in her relationship with Trump.

It’s especially important, Vilsack added, given Trump’s nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. Kennedy, a high-profile critic of the food system, has made clear he wants to expand his influence over agriculture and food policy, as well.

Vilsack also told reporters Friday someone from Trump’s landing team for the Agriculture Department arrived Thursday to begin working on the hand-off, noting that it was a “landing person” instead of a full team. He declined to name the person.

Modern presidential transitions have typically designated landing teams for each agency before the election and deploy them shortly after the election results are called. But the Trump transition delayed for months in signing an agreement with the Biden administration to authorize those teams, before finally reaching a deal just before Thanksgiving. And they now have just over a month to coordinate with agency staff on the transfer of power before Trump enters office.