Brooke Rollins, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the U.S. Department of Agriculture, was not on many people’s radars when her name was first announced as his nominee.
However, she’s got a deeper connection to agriculture than many first realized and has been winning over some of her skeptics as she meets with senators and other ag leaders.
She grew up near the small town of Glen Rose, Texas, with a population of 2,600. She was active in 4-H and FFA, was a state FFA officer and grew up raising horses and showing goats, said Corey Rosenbusch, president and CEO of The Fertilizer Institute. He is also a native of Glen Rose and knew Rollins growing up, although he was a couple of years younger. Rosenbusch’s father was Rollins’ FFA leader.
He said the agriculture industry would have a forceful advocate—and one well connected to Trump—under Rollins.
“Brooke’s going to understand agriculture. She’s going to be in touch with the right people, but more importantly, I think she’s going to have the president’s ear. She’s going to really have access to the president. … They have a very close relationship,” Rosenbusch said.
Competing Cabinet members
He thinks she could counter the influence of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his allies in public health agencies. Kennedy, a long-time critic of agricultural practices, was chosen to head the Department of Health and Human Services. Martin Makary, an acclaimed surgeon at Johns Hopkins University who links the use of pesticides to cancers, is Trump’s pick to head the FDA.
Rosenbusch believes Kennedy’s relationship with Trump is “a little more recent and transactional. Brooke’s has been a lot more long term. … She really is his policy person.”
Similar support for Rollins came from Drew DeBerry, a government affairs consultant at Axis Strategies and former deputy commissioner at the Texas Department of Agriculture. He first met Rollins when she worked for then-Texas Gov. Rick Perry.
Speaking on Agri-Pulse Newsmakers, DeBerry says Rollins built a strong relationship with Trump as director of the Domestic Policy Council during his first administration. DeBerry says the job also gave Rollins knowledge of “all the policies the Department of Agriculture will be involved with.”
Early Reactions to Rollins nomination
Rollins will do a great job working with other members of Trump’s Cabinet, whether it’s Health and Human Services, USTR or EPA, DeBerry said. One thing to remember is her “relative status” among her Cabinet colleagues, he added.
“She has the president’s ear. She’s a brilliant person and great at building coalitions. She will not be shy about standing up for the needs of agriculture,” DeBerry said.
Rollins has been president and CEO of the American First Policy Institute since its founding in 2021 by Rollins and other Trump administration officials. In addition to serving as director of the Domestic Policy Council, she was assistant to the president for strategic initiatives during the first Trump administration.
Prior to joining the White House, Rollins, for 15 years, ran the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a group that is a strong advocate for property rights and fossil fuels and that works to cut regulations and taxes in that state. During her tenure, the group grew from three employees to 100.
The group generally doesn’t get involved directly in federal farm policy, although a 2008 commentary backed then-Gov. Rick Perry’s effort to roll back the Renewable Fuel Standard.
“The thing to know about her is that she is such a dynamic leader, and she’s been fighting for property rights, water rights and small landowners in Texas for years, and those policies are inextricably linked to agriculture policy,” said Sherry Silvester, a distinguished senior fellow at TPPF.
Rollins has a degree in agricultural development from Texas A&M University and a law degree from the University of Texas at Austin. She was the first woman student body president at A&M.
Growing up, Rollins was the first runner up in the Miss Texas Farm Bureau contest.
Russell Boening, president of the Texas Farm Bureau, said he sees Rollins as someone who “thinks through things very thoroughly and looks at them from all sides.” As for the impact of RFK Jr. and other critics of farm chemicals, “I think she’s going to look at the big picture when it comes to that and realize how important all of our tools are that we use in modern ag,” he said.
Boening said a group of Texas Farm Bureau leaders met with her during her White House days. American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall underscored the importance of that connection.
“We’re pleased she has a good relationship with our state Farm Bureau in Texas and hope to build on it if she’s confirmed by the Senate,” Duvall said. “We’re encouraged by her statement that she’d ‘fight for America’s farmers and our nation’s agricultural communities.’ Effective leadership at USDA is more important than ever as farmers and ranchers face a struggling agricultural economy.”
Sen. John Boozman, R-Arkansas, who is in line to become chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee next year, recently met with the nominee. He said Rollins is excited about becoming the secretary and realizes it’s a great opportunity to help a lot of people.
“I think she’s going to do a great job. The other thing that’s really important. … She has the president’s ear. … They talk almost daily. This is somebody the president has a great deal of respect for. For all kinds of reasons, I think she’s going to do great.”
Editor’s note: Sara Wyant is publisher of Agri-Pulse Communications, Inc., www.Agri-Pulse.com.
