President-elect Trump spent Friday afternoon with several people under consideration for secretary of the Department of Agriculture, one of his few remaining unfilled Cabinet positions.
Trump met with former Texas Rep. Henry Bonilla and former Texas commissioner of agriculture Susan Combs at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Fla., where he has been spending time over the holidays. Texas agricultural commissioner Sid Miller also met with some of Trump’s senior aides.
Speaking to reporters afterwards, Bonilla said his meeting with Trump “went very well.”
“There were general questions about the agency, general discussion about regulations that farmers want fixed,” Bonilla said.
He added: “I didn’t ask him about other interviews or who else has been through here, but I sense that they’re close to making a decision. They’ve got quite a few people, that’s my understanding.”
Asked why he felt he was suited for the role, Bonilla said: “I chaired the agriculture appropriations sub-committee for my last six years in Congress, and it was a huge responsibility to be in charge of the budget for all of the USDA,” he said.
After her meeting with Trump, Combs did not comment to reporters. She was seen walking away with a staffer.
Miller, who has been an enthusiastic Trump supporter, told reporters he had a “very good” meeting with Trump aides Steve Bannon and Reince Priebus, saying they discussed the weather, grandkids and agriculture.
Trump met earlier this week with Elsa Murano, the former president of Texas A&M, about serving as secretary of the Department of Agriculture.
A slew of other names have been floated for the job: former Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue, Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback, former Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Chuck Conner, Kansas Sen. Jerry Moran, outgoing Kansas Rep. Tim Huelskamp, former Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman and Trump campaign agriculture advisory committee chairman Charles Herbster.
