Sources close to former President Trump say that he is eyeing Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller to head the USDA if he wins back the presidency in November, according to Politico.
It’s easy to see why Trump would be interested in the brash and often offensive former rodeo cowboy. Miller’s tenure as Agriculture Commissioner has been marked by culture wars, making him perfect for the extreme MAGA vibe of the current Trump campaign.
Like Trump, Miller has been keen to put down any opposition from within the Republican Party itself. He previously referred to Republicans who voted to impeach Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton or voted against Governor Greg Abbott’s school voucher program as RINOs who “slipped the noose.” Trump has been less threatening in his language, but has also made it clear that anyone who doesn’t support him should be treated as an apostate in conservative circles.
Like Trump, Miller is mired in a corruption scandal. His former aide, Todd Smith, is set to face trial this summer over accusations of taking bribes in exchange for issuing licenses to sell hemp. Smith has pleaded not guilty, and Miller has said he still stands by his aide.
Trump has already had a number of his own close confidants indicted and in some cases convicted. Associates like Michael Cohen, Paul Manafort, and Steve Bannon were all in federal custody because of various crimes. Trump himself is under multiple indictments for crimes related to his presidency.
Miller checks one of Trump’s most important boxes as an ally in that he wages racist culture wars in the court. Miller sued the Biden Administration in 2021 over subsidies to farmers of color, calling the policy discriminatory against whites. The lawsuit was sponsored by Stephen Miller’s America First Legal group, an organization based in Texas that focuses on ending affirmative action. Stephen Miller also worked in the Trump White House and was the architect of the child separation policy at the southern border.
It was Trump’s complete conservative takeover of the U.S. Supreme Court that rolled back many Civil Rights Era laws. If re-elected, he and his close allies have vowed to repeal even more protections for marginalized groups in the name of combating anti-white racism, including the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025.
Trump and Miller also have a firm bond in transphobia. Miller ordered people in his office to dress according to their “biological gender” or face termination. Not to be outdone, Trump famously banned trans people from serving in the U.S. military within the first year of his presidency. That policy was abolished when President Joe Biden took office, but Trump has vowed to institute new policies against trans people in a potential second term, including banning gender affirming care.
Miller is everything Trump wants in a politician: combative, unapologetically regressive, and willing to work with people accused of criminal activity. If Trump wins in November, Miller is the obvious, terrible choice to run the USDA.
