Former Veneman Colleague Praises Her Qualities

December 28, 2000

Gary Blumenthal of World Perspectives, Inc., a former colleague of incoming Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman, believes she is the best choice for the job. President-elect George W. Bush's nomination of Veneman "is the best possible choice he could have made," says Blumenthal. "She will be good for American agriculture."

She is experienced and well prepared for the job, says Blumenthal. Her first appointment at USDA many years ago was in a small office coordinating input from the dozens of private sector advisors on trade covering every issue imaginable. "She was extraordinarily conscientious in the task, which prompted her superiors to elevate her to associate administrator of the department's trade agency, the Foreign Agricultural Service. Again, conscientious is the best adjective to describe her efforts. My observation as a peer was that she was inclusive, diligent and successful."

Her reputation led to an appointment as deputy under secretary under President George H.W. Bush. "Again she found support from the career bureaucrats of USDA, who appreciated her approachability, her openness to their suggestions, and ultimately her incisiveness," Blumenthal observes. "Reputation is very important in Washington and hers was stellar, which prompted newly named USDA Secretary Ed Madigan to choose her in 1990 as his deputy secretary. The position required her to delve into and solve many intricate budgetary and management issues of this sprawling federal agency."

She may have become Secretary, he adds, had Bush not lost in 1992. But she returned to California where she was appointed Secretary of Agriculture for a state with the largest and most diverse set of agriculture issues anywhere in the country. Subsequently, she returned to practicing law where she focused on agricultural trade and the adoption of new technologies.

"From an experience standpoint, she did not start out at the top – she worked her way up the line and, as most of us know, the result is important practical experience," Blumenthal says.

She also is "deeply schooled" in the key issues facing U.S. farmers: trade, food safety, farm policy and change brought about through technology and market forces. She was in Punta del Este, Uruguay, in 1986 for the start of the Uruguay Round negotiations and worked them all the way to their conclusion six years later. She also helped negotiate the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Canada and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

"The trade and marketing of food inevitably leads to sanitary and phytosanitary issues, and she has worked them all – hormones, TCK, e-coli, salmonella, biotechnology, etc.," Blumenthal adds. She also was one of the top coordinators for USDA's farm bill effort in 1990.

"She will be supportive of assistance to farmers but will likely be mindful that the assistance must be structured in a manner that minimizes any distortion to the market signals necessary to keep the sector competitive," says Blumenthal.

Veneman "identifies globalization and technological change as the two main forces affecting American agriculture. Her work on biotechnology has focused on market barriers but she has been intrigued by precision agriculture as an adoptive productivity enhancement. Her views on industry consolidation are unclear but she has expressed public concern about the incremental taking of farmland for development."

Blumenthal's entire article on Veneman is on www.rooster.com at http://www.rooster.com/news/detail.asp?cid=1&NewsBy=Category&id=2619&Title=Ann+Veneman+Is+the+Best+Choice