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 is there a way of, like, by appointing by at least advancing the candidacy of Sonny Perdue for chancellor is this a way for Brian Kemp to gain some political points with some Trump voters out there? What Is Sonny Perdue Doing Now? After the sale, the huge boiler on the property was sold for approximately $500,000, easily covering the cost of the purchase even if the rest of the land had been valueless. Eric Stirgus: There are 26 institutions in the system. [News tape] WSB: After what the board's chairman described as a nationwide search with, quote, "numerous highly qualified candidates," in the end, the board voted to pick Perdue as the sole finalist for the job. They have to be in charge of making sure that the schools comply with federal education policies and procedures, state education rules and regulations. There is no conflict of interest in becoming a trustee of a trust that contains no conflicting interests.. Using the CCC to hand billions to big farmersmajor Trump supporters in 2016 is a signature move of Perdues USDA. [News tape] FOX5: Students against Sonny have collected more than a thousand signatures on a petition on Change.org. Eric Stirgus: Well, there's been a few ways. In fact, for the next two weeks after the prayer, the state's epic dry streak grew worse. 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 . 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. [25] Perdue signed the legislation into law on April 12, 2005, three days before tax day. We'll be back next week. 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. So you've had recently, you know, the Board of Regents members serve seven-year terms. In July, as the general election heated up, the department tapped a Depression-era funding mechanism called the Commodity Credit Corporation to come up with $14 billionwithout having to consult Congressto hand to producers of commodities like corn, soybeans and wheat, ostensibly for losses due to the coronavirus. "[36], On November 13, 2007, while Georgia suffered from one of the worst droughts in several decades, Perdue led a group of several hundred people in prayer on the steps of the state Capitol. Undeterred by the pandemic-led spike in hunger, Perdue also doubled- and tripled-down on a long-held goal: boosting work requirements for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program that would eliminate food aid forat least 1.2 million peopleabout a third of them households containing senior citizens, nearly a quarter with children, and 11 percent with a disabled person, according tononpartisan think tank Mathematica. Perdue claimed a combined $511,800 in income from Perdue Inc., a trucking company; Houston Fertilizer & Grain Co., which manages commercial real estate in Bonaire, Ga.; and StarPort Logistics LLC. Revoking accreditation to schools including the University of Georgia, Fort Valley State and Georgia Southern would be a monumental step. This is Georgia Today. [9], Perdue was born in Perry, Georgia, the son of Ophie Viola (Holt), a teacher, and George Ervin Perdue Jr., a farmer. Steve Fennessy: So how do you get a job to be chancellor? Eric Stirgus: I think, you know, his critics have a couple of reasons that they're concerned. Perdue is poised within . Atlanta Journal-Constitution Staff Writer Eric Stirgus: The chancellor is sort of the person who makes sure all the trains run on time, so to speak. RELATED: Oversight group isnt reviewing Georgia regents choice of Sonny Perdue. I ran because I was frustrated with the government. The design of the 2001 Georgian flag was widely unpopular, being derisively named the "Barnes flag". On January 18, 2017, President-elect Donald Trump announced that he would nominate Perdue to be Secretary of Agriculture. publicly condemned how the university system selected Mr. Perdue, will be the first woman to head the institution, a large-scale, low-cost online Master of Science degree program. Economists in the USDA's research branch were told to include disclaimers in their peer-reviewed publications stating that the findings were "preliminary" and "should not be construed to represent any agency determination or policy". And you know, I think there have been a couple of state lawmakers who have publicly come out against the idea. Eric Stirgus: Now, you know, conversely, his supporters say he was a governor of Georgia for eight years. You know, he's a strong conservative, you know, and he's David Perdue's cousin. As governor, Perdue mastered the Trumpian strategy of using know-nothing bigotry as a beard for brazen self-dealing, sometimes involving his own family. 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 . Last month, the U.S. State Department said it will start processing more applicants seeking H-2A temporary. United States, Copyright 2023, Georgia Public Broadcasting. Earlier this week, Georgia's Board of Regents announced that Sonny Perdue was the sole finalist for the job. Many credit Pierre Howard for helping Perdue build the early foundation of what would become his future political career.[20]. [41] The next year, Georgia was affected by the September floods, which were the most severe in Georgia's recorded history. [70], Perdue is an avid sportsman. American Oversight is now calling on the inspector general to investigate whether Perdue improperly participated in any such decision, given his ethics pledge to stay out of any matters that might have a direct and predictable effect on the financial interests of the assets in his trusts. His selection has angered professors concerned about academic freedom. The COVID-19 crisis served as yet another opportunity to promote the political fortunes of his boss, without impeding his pursuit of a pro-agribusiness, anti-worker agenda. "[35], In 2006, Perdue signed a law that gave Georgia "some of the nation's toughest measures against illegal immigrants. Eric Stirgus: Yes, definitely. You know, there was a faction of regents members who were not supportive of him at all. [25] Perdue then used the new law on his 2004 tax return to defer $100,000 in taxable gains from the sale of land. Sonny Perdue, of course, was a two-term governor of Georgia, as well as secretary of agriculture under former President Donald Trump. Steve Fennessy: When did we first hear that Sonny Perdue who was the outgoing Secretary of Agriculture in the Trump administration, of course a two-term former governor of Georgia was interested in the job of chancellor? Janet Napolitano of Arizona, a Democrat, later ran the University of California system, and former Gov. Steve Fennessy: So the faction that was opposed or is opposed to the idea of Sonny Perdue as chancellor seems to be getting smaller. Georgia Today: Is Mayor Bottoms Paying The Political Cost For A COVID Crime Wave? How did we find out about that? Copyright 2023 Mother Jones and the Foundation for National Progress. The new law saved Perdue $100,000 in state taxes. 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. The Georgia Board of Regents on Tuesday named former governor and U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue as the sole finalist to lead the state's University System. Very few Republican elected officials, operatives, donors and activists in Georgia have. But you know, we are hearing, you know, some of the newer members could be a lot more supportive of Sonny Perdue. And Sonny Perdue was one of the only, if not the only cabinet member who went the distance in the Donald Trump administration. He also has largely avoided the sort of major scandals that have dogged many others in Trumps Cabinet. So that's a little strange, isn't it? And I understand that he wasn't the biggest supporter of the idea of Sonny Perdue as chancellor. The policy, according to the American Association of University Professors, is the only one of its kind in the country. [46] After the state dropped out of the bidding and the land was sold to developers, the value of Perdue's property more than doubled. Meanwhile, in 2020, the pandemic ravaged meatpacking workers and put millions out of work, causing a surge in the need for food assistanceboth very much areas of concern for the agriculture department. Like Trump, hes a former Democrat who ascended to political power (in Perdues case, Georgia governor) in a stunning upset. [48], During meetings with Georgia state port officials, then-Governor Perdue discussed his family business's use of a terminal, then started a new export company in Savannah soon after leaving office. Eric Stirgus: You know, it's a pretty important job in the state of Georgia. Higher education is where I wanted to have a real impact as governor, only to be stymied by twin recessions, he said in the board-issued statement. Jess Mador is our producer. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, it was a plum post for the political novice, which he used as a springboard that helped propel him to a US Senate seat in 2014. Why is there 19? Eric Stirgus: Last March, we started hearing talk you know that Perdue was interested in the job or that some board members on the Board of Regents were interested in him becoming chancellor. [42] The floods resulted in Perdue declaring a state of emergency in 17 counties. This is the golden rule do unto others.". Georgia Today is a production of Georgia Public Broadcasting. You know, I guess at the time, they sort of came to an impasse and there was a search firm that was hired to help with the process, but pulled out of the process. The latest scrutiny stems from the agriculture secretary's wealth of current and former interests in agriculture, trucking and land development. The Perdue USDAs largesse to large-scale farmers and agribusinesses went beyond cutting wages and protective measures for their workers. 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. How is that number arrived at? Sonny Perdue issues state of emergency for 17 Georgia counties", "Perdue fails to disclose '04 purchase of land", "Trump to announce Sonny Perdue for Agriculture", "Sonny Perdue Sworn in as 31st U.S. Secretary of Agriculture", "Trump hires campaign workers instead of farmworkers at USDA", "Sonny Perdue is Trump's 'designated survivor' for State of the Union 2018", "Perdue tells second Iowa Ag Summit he wants to support new farmers", "Trump administration to return refined grains to school lunches", Many USDA workers to quit as research agencies move to Kansas City: 'The brain drain we all feared', ERS union predicts mass exodus ahead of relocation, 'Cut, Relocate, Eviscerate': Moving a USDA Research Agency Will Have Lasting Consequences, Employees Say, Economists flee Agriculture Dept.

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