Trump Speaks in Davos Jan 6 and DEI Fallout, Troops Ordered to US-Mexico Border

On By Littum

In the Senate confirmation hearing for Brooke Rollins to serve as agriculture secretary, Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., pressed the nominee on whether Trump’s promise of mass deportations of undocumented people would negatively impact the agriculture industry and force small producers to shut down. .

Noting that “40% of farm workers in this country are undocumented,” Durbin said his constituents with family farming businesses in dairy and produce have expressed concern about their ability to remain viable if ICE deports the immigrants whose labor they are heavily dependent on.

“You know what that means? They’re vulnerable to being deported, and if they’re deported, what are the farmers going to do for a lot of them, for a lot of different industries, immigration is critical,” Durbin said. “So I’m going to just asking you what is your policy on immigration we have in the real world not the criminals?”

Rollins, who is the CEO and president of the conservative think tank America First Policy Institute, which has advocated for mass deportation policies, said “the president’s vision of a secure border and mass deportation on a scale that matters” is something she supports. but noted that she is also committed to defending America’s farmers and ranchers.

“I’m going to be extremely transparent, and I think you deserve it,” Rollins said. “That’s my commitment, is to help President Trump implement his agenda in an effective manner, while also defending, if confirmed as Secretary of Agriculture, our farmers and ranchers across this country.”

Rollins acknowledged that the two priorities may appear to conflict, but floated the idea of ​​expanding and modernizing the H-2A visa program. The program allows U.S. companies to hire foreign workers for seasonal agricultural jobs with the goal of reducing agricultural labor shortages.

“I’m just wondering if we should give fair warning to farmers and ranchers across America that if you have immigrant labor, you can expect federal agents to come and search your property?” Durbin asked. “Is that in the future for farmers and ranchers under the mass deportation plan?”

Rollins said she has not been involved in crafting Trump’s deportation plans and therefore could not answer the question, but noted that she wanted to make sure the president understood important data about the agricultural workforce.