On Dec. 10, 2020, then-President-elect Joseph R. Biden announced his intention to nominate Hamilton alumnus Tom Vilsack ’72 to lead the Department of Agriculture as part of his new cabinet, a position Vilsack had previously held under the Obama administration. Secretary Vilsack was kind enough to share some of his thoughts with
The Spectator
and remarked: “I am honored to have been asked by President Biden and Vice President Harris to be the first United States Secretary of Agriculture in the history of the Department to be asked to come back to serve again at the Department.”
Vilsack, a native of Pittsburgh, entered Hamilton in the fall of 1968. During his first semester as a student on the Hill, he met Christie Bell, who was studying at the neighboring all-female Kirkland College. Vilsack graduated from Hamilton in 1972 with a concentration in History. As he began his post-graduate life, he turned “Hamily” into family, marrying Bell a year after his graduation. After earning his Juris Doctor degree from Albany Law School in 1975, Vilsack settled in his wife’s hometown of Mount Pleasant, Iowa, and quickly entered the political arena. In some ways, Vilsack’s current position represents a partnership that has been in the making for quite some time; his early political efforts included volunteer work for the 1987 presidential campaign of none other than Joe Biden.
Vilsack kicked off his career in politics when he was elected mayor of Mount Pleasant in 1987. After years of work representing the community in which his wife was raised, he was elected to serve in the Iowa Senate in 1992. In this post, Vilsack worked to enact legislation related to health care coverage and reshape Iowa’s Workforce Development Department, among other efforts. In 1998, Vilsack sought the seat of the governor when the incumbent Governor Terry Branstad stepped down after 16 years in the position. Winning the election, Vilsack became the first Democrat to serve as governor of Iowa in 30 years, breaking a strong Republican hold and reshaping the state’s political agenda.
Vilsack’s work as governor gained the attention of many, and in 2008, President Barack Obama nominated him for the position of Secretary of Agriculture. As head of the Agriculture Department, Vilsack worked closely with President Obama to enact critical reform, developing a trusting relationship with the President and even being appointed to serve as the “designated survivor” during the President’s 2012 State of the Union Address. Throughout his term, Vilsack demonstrated his great commitment to the American people, working to represent agricultural workers everywhere and defend this vital industry.
Vilsack has now been renominated to this post to help the Biden administration what is no doubt one of America’s most troublesome times in recent history. Vilsack believes that the Department “will play a pivotal role in responding to the COVID-19 crisis, the need to eliminate systemic racism, and the climate change challenge.” He further mentioned that “the opportunity has never been better to create a healthier, sustainable and regenerative food system and a more prosperous rural economy.”
The Senate Agriculture Committee voted unanimously to advance Vilsack’s nomination as secretary on Feb. 2. Vilsack awaits confirmation by the U.S. Senate but shared that he is excited to get to work, adding that he feels “incredibly fortunate to be part of two historic administrations with the country’s first African American President and the first woman Vice President.”