As governor from 2003 until 2011, he celebrated the states legacy of chattel slaverysigning 2009 legislation making April Confederate History and Heritage Month, honoring the more than 90,000 brave men and women who served the Confederate States of America. He was an early adopter of race-motivated voter suppression, signing into law one of the nations first strict ID laws. Each of those firms is owned by Perdue Business Holdings Inc., and Secretary Perdues newly created FALF Management Trust of which the secretary is a co-trustee owns 100 percent of the voting stock in Perdue Business Holdings, according to his 2019 disclosure. His name is Sonny Perdue. Yes. Brian Kemp and thought Trump thought his endorsement would spell immediate trouble for the incumbent. He was the first Republican chosen by Georgians to occupy the governor's mansion since the Reconstruction-era election of Rufus Bullock in 1868. The crux of the watchdog complaint comes down to a handful of Perdues businesses the secretary reported as sources of income, at least a half-million dollars, on his 2019 filing. Thanks for listening. The United States Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry overwhelmingly approved his nomination on March 30, with a 191 vote. [12], In education, Perdue promoted the return of most decision-making to the local level. Steve Fennessy: By definition, you're appointed as a regent by the sitting governor, but appointing and hiring a chancellor is supposedly, at least theoretically, not supposed to be political, right? So without that accreditation, it could severely impact, you know, enrollment. "[45], The project overall has been scrutinized as a waste of taxpayer money due to mismanagement of bond money and extremely low visitors. You know, there were some complaints that, you know, he was involved in some changes that, you know, made it a little bit more difficult for students to get the HOPE scholarship. [24], In mid-2003, Perdue purchased 101 acres (0.41km2) of land next to his Houston County, Georgia, home. George Ervin "Sonny" Perdue III[1] (born December 20, 1946) is an American veterinarian, businessman, politician, and university administrator who served as the 31st United States Secretary of Agriculture from 2017 to 2021. Eric Stirgus: Well, there's been a few ways. From the year 2017 to 2021, George has served as the 31st United States Secretary Of Agriculture. And you know, for a lot of critics, you know, it did raise their concerns about all of this. You can keep up with Georgia today by subscribing to the show at GPB.org. The property (in Estill, South Carolina) had originally been purchased by ADM for 5.5 million dollars, and independent assessments and government tax assessors agree on that as a fair range; however, AGrowStar was offered the property for US$250,000, a fraction of its value. But ethics questions have piled up in recent months about the secretarys mixing of USDA duties and his political promotion of the president. What does it mean to be a chancellor? They range from Georgia State University, which has the most students in the system, like about 53,000 students; Georgia Tech, Kennesaw State both of those schools have about 40,000 students each and then University of Georgia. Eric Stirgus: Yes, I think the governor could certainly use this on the campaign trail and, you know, to, you know, David Perdue supporters and say, "Hey, look, you know, I've made Sonny Perdue, chancellor of the university system. He shortly thereafter became a committee chairman, then climbed the leadership ladder to majority leader and to Senate president pro tempore. Senator David Perdue (R-GA) abstained, as they are first cousins. All Rights Reserved. Very few Republican elected officials, operatives, donors and activists in Georgia have. [46] The land was adjacent to the 20,000 acres (81km2) Oaky Woods preserve being sold by Weyerhaeuser. Steve Fennessy: How Gov. Eric Stirgus: You know, it's a pretty important job in the state of Georgia. You know, it's kind of a fascinating situation that, you know, your cousin is running for governor and at the same time his political opponent could be putting you in charge of one of the most important positions in state government. Eric Stirgus: Now, you know, conversely, his supporters say he was a governor of Georgia for eight years. I think Steve really was making maybe about a half million dollars when he retired, so that's way more than the governor of Georgia was making. Dr. Sonny Perdue bio. Eric Stirgus: I think, you know, his critics have a couple of reasons that they're concerned. Why is Sonny Perdue is such a polarizing figure? A chancellors job is to defend the system against such bills, said Matthew Boedy, a rhetoric and composition professor at the University of North Georgia and the president of the Georgia conference of the American Association of University Professors. The office directed the USDA chief to reimburse the government for travel expenses and other costs of the event. He also talked about, you know, bringing stability to the system. So that's a little strange, isn't it? Conley. Caught in the middle of a Republican overhaul of education, teachers feel under attack, Senate bill cracks down on local school boards' ability to eject disruptive parents from meetings. The commitments entailed moving his holdings into a new trust and agreeing not to serve as a trustee or beneficiary of the fund. Although it returned to last place in 2005,[26] Georgia rose to 49th place in 2006 in the combined math and reading mean score, including the writing portion added to the test that year. The U.S. Senate confirmed Secretary Perdue by a vote of 87-to-11 on Monday evening. @SecretarySonny (to use his folksy Twitter handle) stayed the course that characterized his entire time at UDSA. The Georgia Public Library Service and the Georgia Archives . [24] The State Ethics Commission ruled against Perdue twice, finding that he had taken improper campaign contributions from donors including SunTrust Banks and that he had improperly used one of his family business's airplanes on the campaign, for which the commission fined the sitting governor. earned Perdue a knuckle-rap from the Office of Special Counsel, publicly for a way to cut federally mandated wages, lavished mainly huge soybean, hog, and cotton farmers, more than double the price tag of President Barack Obamas 2009 auto bailout, join us with a tax-deductible donation today. Sonny Perdue Age: 75 Birthplace: Perry, Georgia Political History: Georgia state senator, 1991-2002; governor, 2003-2011; U.S. Department of Agriculture secretary, 2017-2021. Can you pitch in a few bucks to help fund Mother Jones' investigative journalism? [3], In 2006, Perdue was re-elected to a second term in the 2006 Georgia gubernatorial election, winning nearly 58% of the vote. [69] Perdue lives in Bonaire, Georgia. She said that this is coming from a place of strength and not weakness. Now the nonprofit American Oversight is asking USDAs inspector general to review the new structure of Perdues assets and determine whether it violates the commitments he made as a nominee for the job in 2017. [24], Late in the evening of March 29, 2005, the penultimate day of the legislative session, Representative Larry O'Neal, who also worked part-time as Perdue's personal lawyer, introduced legislation making capital gains tax owed on Georgia land sales deferrable if the income goes to purchase out-of-state land, also, unusually, making the tax break retroactive. Brian Kemp is in a fierce battle with David Perdue. Lance Cheung/USDA; Mother Jones Illustration. Perdues spokesperson also rejected the watchdog groups request for an investigation as politically motivated. Kemp and Perdue are also close political allies, and Kemp recently replaced four members on the board before the vote. Perdue is a kind of an easy-going Southern version of the president he served so zealously. Perdue and a partner purchased the agricultural land in 2009 and later earned so-called mitigation bank credits for converting the tract for wetland conservation purposes, according to the watchdog organizations. [24] During his governorship, Perdue collected at least $25,000 in gifts, including sporting event tickets and airplane flights. On March 1, 2022, the Board of Regents of University System of Georgia appointed Perdue as the system's 14th chancellor, effective April 1, 2022. The complex arrangements were criticized as breaking the spirit of the rule, however, and that Perdue and his family's ties to his corporation were not distanced as much as the law intended. A former two-term governor of Georgia, George Ervin Perdue III, known throughout his life as Sonny, served as Agriculture Secretary from 2017 to 2021. Sonny Perdue Is Sole Finalist to Lead Georgias Public Universities, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/15/us/sonny-perdue-georgia-chancellor.html. [27] In 2007, Georgia moved up to 46th place. Sonny Perdue won the 2002 Georgia governor's race, defeating the incumbent, Democrat Roy Barnes, to become the state's first Republican governor since Reconstruction. Eric Stirgus: I think it's been a mix of both. What is it about this job that appeals to him? Sonny Perdue's . Steve Fennessy: Chancellor of the University System of Georgia it's one of the most coveted jobs in higher education. Perdues response? And then a couple of months later, my colleague Greg Bluestein ran into him at an event and Sonny did say that he was interested in the position, if the regents would have him. of Agriculture", "U.S. Senate: U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 115th Congress 1st Session", "Sonny Perdue Named Chancellor of the University System of Georgia", "Meet David PerdueHe Might Be Georgia's Next Senator", National Governors Association: Sonny Perdue, "Trump taps former Georgia governor for agriculture secretary", "Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue Perdue Farms Plans Major Expansion in Georgia", "Official Results of the November 5, 2002 General Election", "Ethical Lapses Trail Nominee For Agriculture Conflicts of Interest as Governor of Georgia", "3 minutes, 1 tax bill, $100,000 for Sonny Perdue", "Georgia climbs in SAT rankings despite drop in score", "2008 SAT Results Highlight Need for Rigor", "Georgia View: Sonny Perdue's Non-Legacy", "Georgia leaders try to skip controversy in flag vote", "Tom Price, Kasim Reed, Sonny Perdue and the Art of the Georgia Deal", "Statement of Governor Sonny Perdue Regarding Court Ruling to Stay Transition to Reformulated Gasoline", "Georgia Enacts a Tough Law on Immigrants", The Confederate and Neo-Confederate Reader: The "Great Truth", "Trump could name Agriculture Secretary whose drought strategy was to pray for rain", "Yes, There Were Black Confederates. Some would say the most important job is, you know, making sure that money that comes from the state is sent to the schools and is being spent properly. Eric Stirgus: Well, he didn't go into specifics that day. This is diversity and inclusion. What Is Sonny Perdue Doing Now? But the threat is part of the latest controversy for the Board of Regents, which in October approved a new policy where universities can fire tenured professors with little to no faculty input. I'm going to read a paragraph towards the end of her letter. In the podcasts final episode before the election, released Oct. 29, Perdue hosted another MAGA loyalist, the high-living former Wall Street man and TV personality Larry Kudlow, the non-economist who Trump improbably chose to lead the National Economic Council. On January 18, 2017, President-elect Donald Trump announced that he would nominate Perdue to be Secretary of Agriculture. Georgia Today is a production of Georgia Public Broadcasting. [46] Perdue failed to disclose his ownership of the property in required financial disclosure forms. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. The Board of Regents announced that the former Republican governor is its choice to become chancellor. Eric Stirgus: Sonny Perdue, you know, encouraged then-President Trump to endorse Brian Kemp in the Republican primary back in 2018. [News tape] WSB: As governor, Perdue's record on education is also being called into question. Steve Fennessy: Politics makes strange bedfellows. He spent his 2020 like he spent the other years of his Washington stint: flattering his boss at every opportunity, and lavishing largesse on political allies while undercutting poor people and food-system workers. They have to be in charge of making sure that the schools comply with federal education policies and procedures, state education rules and regulations. So, you know, it'll be interesting to see. Eric Stirgus: And then there's been issues that a lot of Republican lawmakers have been bringing up to in the Georgia Legislature in recent years about campus speech issues that they feel that, you know, students and groups cannot speak freely on college campuses, particularly conservatives. [News tape] FOX5: Critics have questioned Perdue's experience, pointing out his lack of experience in the higher education setting. You know, I've worked with him, but you know, I just didn't feel like, you know, he was the best person for the job. The watchdog groups are now seeking information about whether Perdue was involved in a decision by the Army Corps of Engineers which works with USDA on some wetlands restoration efforts to reallocate Soque River Conservations credits in a way that significantly increased their value. Eric Stirgus: Yes. There, he managed a workforce of 110,000 employees in the U.S. Department of Agriculture with the stated objective of being the most efficient, effective and customer-friendly agency in the . On December 30, 2016, Perdue's company AGrowStar purchased property and a facility from Archer-Daniels-Midland (ADM), a large American agribusiness corporation that the Department of Agriculture regulates. Perdue restructured his original family trust into a new fund that he did not oversee, and the fund then sold off two of his businesses directly involved in agriculture the only assets that posed potential conflicts, according to a USDA spokesperson. The FALF Management Trust had no conflicting assets with his duties as Secretary of Agriculture, and therefore the Secretary could become a trustee of the trust. [67], Regardless of whether the deal was intended to influence Perdue's actions, and if it was if it actually had any impact, the Perdue years were good ones for ADM. Perdue will not improve the state of education as chancellor - he will only ruin it.. By signing up, you agree to our privacy policy and terms of use, and to receive messages from Mother Jones and our partners. Last month, the U.S. State Department said it will start processing more applicants seeking H-2A temporary. He also has largely avoided the sort of major scandals that have dogged many others in Trumps Cabinet. You know, he's a strong conservative, you know, and he's David Perdue's cousin. The likely appointment of Mr. Perdue, a Republican, comes during a volatile time in Georgia politics, with the State Legislature considering several bills that would ban, or limit, how race and activism are taught in the classroom. But then prior to him, you had Errol Davis, who was a utilities company executive and he had no administrative experience in higher education. So you've had recently, you know, the Board of Regents members serve seven-year terms. The state's Board of Regents on Wednesday named a veteran finance official as the acting chancellor of Georgia's public university system, stalling former Gov. Opponents of the choice say Perdue's appointment would jeopardize academic freedom across the systems 26 campuses. [23] Prior to Perdue's becoming governor, no state agency had compiled an inventory of what assets were owned by the state. At the beginning of 2020, Perdue yearned publicly for a way to cut federally mandated wages for migrant farm workers on guest visas. Let's go into November and be against Stacey Abrams together.". There's been some social media push against him. Eric Stirgus: You know, and then there have been other instances where, you know, Sonny has supported now-Gov. . Or are they sometimes coming from outside it? So those are some of the things that have concerned a lot of state leaders or particularly on the Republican side. [45], During his governorship, the Georgia State Ethics Commission received thirteen complaints against Perdue. [40], In 2008, Perdue worked with the Georgia Emergency Management Agency to implement Ready Georgia, a campaign to increase disaster preparedness throughout the state. Eric Stirgus: There are 26 institutions in the system. Sanders: one of the the most fun, engaging, charming, and charismatic people Ive ever been around. Perdue: he has an amazing instinctive ability to make decisions.. Chris Saeger, a spokesperson for Accountable.US, said the reorganization of Perdues assets from one trust to another appears to be nothing more than a shell game and a maze of technicalities and denials.. In July, with the economic fallout from the pandemic generating a massive hunger crisis, Perdue alighted on North Carolina, a key swing state, to stage a rally promoting congressionally mandated food aid as an example of the personal benevolence of Donald Trump. Since joining the Trump administration, Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue's complicated network of ties to Georgia-based entities including his family's company, Perdue Partners raised questions about potential conflicts of interest as well as his working relationship with his cousin, Georgia Sen. David Perdue. Secretary Perdue was just chastised for his abuse of tax dollars for political purposes by ethics authorities, so we cannot take these claims at face value, he said. I cant imagine Sonny Perdue doing that.. Janet Napolitano of Arizona, a Democrat, later ran the University of California system, and former Gov. [30], In 2001, Democratic governor Roy Barnes replaced the 1956 state flag, which incorporated the battle flag of the Confederacy, and which had been adopted by Georgia largely as a protest against desegregation. Former US Secretary of Agriculture and former Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue were named chancellor of the University System of Georgia by the Board of Regents today (USG). The credits are meant to offset the environmental impact of land development and they can be bought and sold on the marketplace. [25] Perdue then used the new law on his 2004 tax return to defer $100,000 in taxable gains from the sale of land. Perdue made his acting debut in "We Are Marshall," a 2006 film about the 1970 plane crash that claimed the lives of 75 Marshall University football players, coaches, supporters and staff.. He referenced the pandemic and the phrase "Cultural Revolution." In December 2001, Perdue resigned as state senator and devoted himself entirely to running for the office of Governor of Georgia. [46], In December 2004, Perdue bought $2 million worth of land near Disney World from a developer who he had previously appointed to the state's economic development board. But Sonny Perdue was there from the beginning. 11/08/2018 02:42 PM EST. DECATUR The Washington Post on Tuesday published a story that Archer Daniels Midland Co. sold a grain storage plant valued at millions of dollars to Sonny Perdue for $250,000 weeks after he . Then there were the full-on MAGA-bots like Sonny Perdue, the Georgia politician and agribusiness entrepreneur who became agriculture secretary. Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms shocked manyby announcing last week she will not be running for reelection. USDA said the reorganization of Perdues finances was cleared by career ethics staff, pointing to the secretarys 2019 financial disclosure that was signed by ethics officials. (Washington, D.C., April 28, 2020) - U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue released the following statement after President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Order to keep meat and poultry processing facilities open during the COVID-19 national emergency. So very excited to have the president standing with us and I'm a lot like him. His anti-immigrant machinations worked all too well, creating a crippling labor shortage for Georgias immigrant-dependent farms and poultry slaughterhouses. The first two companies are managed by Perdues children, according to Georgia records. He was there at the end. Is that right? David Perdue now a U.S. senator to . [60] In August 2019, Lewis Ziska, a USDA plant physiology climate scientist, quit after department administrators attempted to impede the publication of one of his studies in the journal Science Advances. Perdue, a former US senator, has so far raised a fraction of what Kemp has in his campaign war chest. Similarly, while the pandemic savaged meatpacking workers, killing at least 563 as of mid-December, the ag department kept on with a trend it had started in 2019: allowing giant poultry companies to speed up their slaughterhouse kill lines. Now to me, Eric, that sounds like a kind of an implied threat that appointing Sonny Perdue as chancellor could mean that we'd lose accreditation. We noticed you have an ad blocker on. [58][59], Under Perdue, the Department of Agriculture (USDA) was accused of suppressing scientific publications for political reasons. A longtime Atlanta-based journalist, he is a former editor-in-chief of Atlanta magazine. One is looking at his record, as you know, the governor of Georgia. Mitch Daniels of Indiana has led Purdue University since 2012. Steve Fennessy: Sonny Perdue is a Republican, so when he uses an expression like Cultural Revolution, what is he referring to? I'm joined by Eric Stirgus, who covers higher education for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Steve Fennessy: News that Sonny Perdue will, in all likelihood be the university system of Georgia's next chancellor comes at a time when state legislators are debating bills about how racial history should be taught in classrooms. Steve Fennessy: Welcome back to Georgia Today. In research shared with POLITICO, Accountable.US alleges that farm policies backed by the secretary could potentially have benefited his own or his familys interests beyond the two agribusinesses that were sold.
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