Biden Picks Pittsburgh Native Tom Vilsack For Agriculture Post

Pittsburgh PA

09 December, 2020

7:47 AM

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — President-elect Joe Biden has selected former Iowa governor and Pittsburgh native Tom Vilsack to be agriculture secretary, according to multiple reports. An official announcement is expected soon regarding Vilsack, who was raised in Pittsburgh. Vilsack certainly will need no learning curve in the position. He served as agriculture secretary for eight years in President Barack Obama's administration and also advised Biden on rural and agriculture matters during Biden's presidential campaign. He also was a finalist to be Hillary Clinton's running mate in 2018. Vilsack, 69, was born into an orphanage in Pittsburgh and adopted in 1951. He is a 1968 graduate of Shady Side Academy. After graduating Hamilton College and Albany Law School in New York, he moved to Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, his wife Christie's hometown, where he practiced law. He served as Mt. Pleasant mayor and in the Iowa state senate. He served two terms as Iowa's governor from 199 through 2007. Vilsack currently heads the U.S. Dairy Export Council, a trade group that advocates for the dairy industry overseas. His nomination, which could be announced later this week, requires U.S. Senate confirmation.