Source:  POLITICO'S MORNING AGRICULTURE, 12/7/20

The jockeying over Biden’s choice for Agriculture secretary has been dominated by Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio) and former North Dakota Sen. Heidi Heitkamp. But there are several fresh faces in the mix: Kathleen Merrigan, who was deputy Ag secretary under President Barack Obama, and Arturo Rodriguez, former president of the United Farm Workers union. Even Obama’s former USDA chief, Tom Vilsack, is now seen as a possibility. Don’t miss the latest from our POLITICO team.

Trump’s last farm economy report card: USDA projects farm income will surge to almost $120 billion this year, the highest level since 2013 — but taxpayer subsidies account for nearly 40 percent of net earnings. The spike in income is not a surprise, as Congress and the Trump administration have flooded the farm economy with cash this year, but it highlights the dilemma Biden faces in terms of extending the payments or winding them down in 2021, your host reported for Pros.

Meet your next House Ag leaders: Reps. David Scott (D-Ga.) and G.T. Thompson (R-Pa.) will head up the Agriculture panel starting in January as chairman and ranking member. The longtime lawmakers were picked by their respective parties over several other contenders. Scott will succeed Chairman Collin Peterson (D-Minn.), who lost his re-election bid last month, while Thompson takes over for the retiring Rep. Mike Conaway (R-Texas).