A sort of wayward GOP son, Kansas Rep. Tim Huelskamp has had it rough since coming to Capitol Hill. After opposing then-House Speaker John Boehner, he was stripped of his committee spots in 2012. And then this year he was defeated in a landslide primary by an establishment-backed challenger.
But members of the House Freedom Caucus are now pushing the Trump administration to consider the fifth-generation farmer for Agriculture secretary.
When Vice President-elect Pence visits Capitol Hill Thursday, Freedom Caucus Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, will make the pitch personally. A GOP aide told the Washington Examiner that Jordan “plans to recommend Huelskamp directly to the new administration.”
If successful, the appointment would be the biggest pickup for the cantankerous group of conservatives. And it’d be an opportunity to settle a score with House Speaker Ryan. After Huelskamp’s August loss, the Freedom Caucus blamed Ryan for letting Huelskamp’s seat get rustled.
“Everybody knows if the speaker of the House says, ‘Tim Huelskamp is back on the Agriculture Committee,’ it makes a difference,” Jordan told Politico at the time. “Everybody knows that would have had an impact.”
But from the ashes of that disaster could grow the roses of Huelskamp’s success and leadership’s next headache, when renewal of the Farm Bill rolls around in 2018.
On paper, the Kansas congressman is qualified for the cabinet spot. Before Congress, he farmed and ranched in one of the most productive agriculture districts in the nation. In addition, he has a degree to his name. Huelskamp holds a Ph.D. in agriculture policy from American University.
“I think I’d fit in well as Ag Secretary,” Huelskamp told the Washington Examiner before stressing that he’d have to “carefully consider an offer to serve in President Trump’s administration.”
But Huelskamp is being coy. The farmer who loves the spotlight needs a job. And if Trump called, he’d be hard-pressed to say no.
While the rest of the Republican conference put Trump out to pasture, Freedom Caucus members like Jordan and Huelskamp gave their full-throated support to the nominee. That could garner him some good will. And he’s not unfamiliar with the incoming executive’s team either.
Trump campaign manager Kellyanne Conway worked with the anti-establishment Republican during his unsuccessful bid to keep his seat earlier this year.
Of course, Huelskamp’s bid is a longshot because he’s been branded an outsider inside the GOP conference. The agriculture lobby would kick and scream before letting him take the spot. But if Huelskamp got the job, it’d be the biggest pickup yet for the tiny Freedom Caucus and it could change the landscape of agropolitics for years to come.
Philip Wegmann is a commentary writer for the Washington Examiner.
