LEESBURG, Ind. (Network Indiana): Donald Trump’s campaign has named seven Hoosiers to a team of agricultural advisers.
State ag commissioner Ted McKinney and four Indiana CEO’s are among 64 people the Trump campaign says will advise him on farm policy. The business leaders include the owners of Tom Farms in Leesburg, Rose Acre Farms in Seymour, and Fair Oaks Dairy. The fourth is Lucas Oil’s Forrest Lucas, who founded the farmers’ rights group Protect the Harvest.
Also on the panel are two Indiana natives who served as deputy secretaries of agriculture under President George W. Bush, Chuck Conner and Jim Moseley.
Trump’s campaign announced the panel on Tuesday, but McKinney says the group has already held a couple of conference calls with the campaign to suggest what issues are significant for farmers. McKinney and Tom Farms CEO Kip Tom, who ran for Congress earlier this year, both point to regulatory overreach at the top of the list. McKinney says the group has also pointed the campaign toward examining how tax and trade policy affect farmers.
McKinney says he hasn’t talked with Governor Mike Pence, Trump’s running mate, about the advisory group, and doesn’t believe the number of Hoosiers on the panel reflects Pence’s intervention.
