Kennedy’s previous makes him an unlikely candidate for agriculture secretary, in accordance with Daniel Glickman, who served within the function throughout Invoice Clinton’s presidency. “It’s onerous for me to think about, given Trump’s conventional base within the heartlands, that he would decide any individual who was an advocate for breaking apart massive farms and breaking consolidated agriculture,” says Glickman.
Like prime posts at HHS, the USDA secretary place would have to be confirmed by a Senate vote. “I don’t assume [Kennedy] is a slam dunk,” says Glickman.
Trump’s decide for USDA chief throughout his first time period was Sonny Perdue, a former governor of Georgia and founding father of an agricultural buying and selling firm. Most agriculture secretaries both have a background within the business or politics—two essential constituencies for the one who can be in control of a division that employs practically 100,000 and is made up of 29 businesses, together with forestry, conservation, and diet packages. “The distinction between Sonny Perdue and Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. is like night time and day,” says Glickman.
If Kennedy have been to be confirmed as agriculture secretary, he would possibly wrestle to enact essentially the most radical components of his program. He’s an outspoken critic of pesticides, however the USDA is usually not in control of regulating these, says Dan Blaustein-Rejto, director of agriculture coverage and analysis on the Breakthrough Institute. Fairly, the EPA regulates pesticides with public well being makes use of.
Though he could not have the ability to straight affect pesticide laws, Kennedy has stated he would attempt to “weaponize” different businesses in opposition to “chemical agriculture” by commissioning scientific analysis into the consequences of pesticides. The USDA Agricultural Analysis Service has an almost $2 billion discretionary finances for analysis into crops, livestocks, diet, meals security, and pure sources conservation.
There are different levers that an agriculture secretary may pull, says Blaustein-Rejto. The USDA is investing $3 billion by means of the partnership for climate-smart commodities—a scheme that’s speculated to make US agriculture extra climate-friendly. A USDA chief would possibly have the ability to put their thumb on their scale by influencing the choice standards for these sorts of packages. The USDA additionally oversees the Commodity Credit score Company (CCC), which has a $5 billion fund that it makes use of to assist farm incomes and conservation packages, and to help farmers hit by pure disasters. It’s attainable {that a} USDA chief may affect how these CCC funds are distributed by the company.
Kennedy has additionally argued that company pursuits have captured the US’s dietary tips, and he pledged to take away conflicts of curiosity from USDA teams that give you dietary tips. US dietary tips are developed collectively by the USDA and HHS and are up to date each 5 years, giving the agriculture secretary restricted alternatives to affect any suggestions.
“If RFK is in a high-level coverage function, I count on to see much more speak about ultra-processed meals, however I’m undecided what that might truly entail in relation to the dietary tips,” says Blaustein-Rejto.
The consultants WIRED spoke with largely assume Kennedy’s extra excessive positions will seemingly be constrained by paperwork. However the message that elevating a vocal vaccine skeptic and conspiracy theorist would ship stays a critical concern forward of a possible second Trump administration.
