President Donald Trump is no stranger to naming bizarre picks to serve in his administration.
Betsy DeVos, his Secretary of Education, made a name for herself trying to destroy Michigan’s public education system.
Scott Pruitt, his head of the Environmental Protection Agency, does not believe that human beings are the leading cause of climate change.
Linda McMahon, former CEO of the WWE and his Administrator of the Small Business Administration, made her company huge by cannibalizing smaller organizations and cherry picking their talent.
It should come as no surprise that Trump’s pick for the leader of the United States’ Department of Agriculture research department, who is generally one of the country’s top scientists, is nothing of the sort.
Meet Sam Clovis, who, according to the Independent, is Trump’s top pick for the position. He has a PhD from the University of Alabama, but most of his research is in homeland security and counter-terrorism. He has published very little, and has also apparently never taken a science class beyond the undergraduate level and is also quite skeptical on climate change.
Clovis also mounted an unsuccessful Senate campaign in Iowa in 2014, losing in the primaries. He is better known for hosting a conservative radio show, “Impact with Sam Clovis,” and, most importantly for his qualification in the current administration, being a very early and vocal Trump supporter.
Catherine Woteki, who held the same position under President Barack Obama, said that appointing Clovis to this position was ridiculous, as ProPublica reported she compared it to:
“… Appointing someone without a medical background to lead the National Institutes of Health.”
Sounds just like something Trump would do!
Woteki continued to sound exasperated, stating:
“This position is the chief scientist of the Department of Agriculture. It should be a person who evaluates the scientific body of evidence and moves appropriately from there.”
I’m sure Clovis will handle that with no issues whatsoever. He was last seen throwing a fellow member of the Trump team under the bus. Here’s his pitch for his failed Senate bid. Sweet tie; he must love the country:
Featured image via YouTube screengrab.
