Kailee Tkacz Buller: USDA Pawn of Big Seed Oil?
tl;dr: Chief of staff is not a policy-making position. Take a deep breath...
So the USDA announced today a bunch of new Trump appointees.
Here’s the link from the agency.
“Kailee Tkacz Buller Appointed as Chief of Staff of the U.S. Department of Agriculture
“Kailee Tkacz Buller will serve as Chief of Staff of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Most recently, Kailee served as the President & CEO of the National Oilseed Processors Association and the Edible Oil Producers Association. Previously, Kailee served as Chief of Staff to the Deputy Secretary of Agriculture and held numerous leadership roles across the Department in the first Trump Administration. Governor Youngkin appointed Kailee as the 8th Congressional District Representative of the Virginia Board of Agriculture and Consumer Services, and she holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University at Buffalo.”
Yeah, it’s alarming that she was “the President & CEO of the National Oilseed Processors Association and the Edible Oil Producers Association.”
That doesn’t really sit well with Robert Kennedy Jr.’s anti-seed-oil “Make American Healthy Again” agenda.
But look at what she did prior to her job with Big Seed Oil: “Previously, Kailee served as Chief of Staff to the Deputy Secretary of Agriculture and held numerous leadership roles across the Department in the first Trump Administration.”
Here’s an organization chart of the USDA:
You know who doesn’t show up on that org chart? The Secretary’s Chief of Staff, the job Buller just got.
My initial reaction is that Trump is putting a loyalist in there ASAP to get things under control.
Note the next name:
Preston Parry Appointed as Deputy Chief of Staff of the U.S. Department of Agriculture
Preston Parry will serve as Deputy Chief of Staff of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Preston most recently served as Strategic Assistant to the President & CEO at the America First Policy Institute.
Who ran the America First Policy Institute? Brooke Rollins:
“Rollins has spent the last four years at the helm of America First Policy Institute (AFPI), a nonprofit group launched by former Trump administration officials and focused on advancing Trump’s first-term agenda after he lost his reelection bid.”
Rollins is Trump’s pick for USDA secretary.
It seems that she gave Trump a list of people she wants in the USDA while she awaits Senate confirmation.
So yeah, it’s unfortunate that Buller hid out during the Biden years at Big Seed Oil, but it’s also notable that she’s jumping ship at the first opportunity.
The proof is always in the pudding, but I think we should keep an eye on what Rollins actually does, and not worry about her employee’s job for the last four years.
P.S. 2025/01/23
People are taking note.
