Scott, Costa Throw Hats in Ring for House Ag Leadership Role

Minnesota Congressman and House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson’s defeat in last week’s election opened the door to a new leader, and two fellow “Blue Dog” conservative democrats are vying for the position. Reps. David Scott of Georgia and Jim Costa of California both say they’re well-suited to the position. Both have roots in agriculture and the industry comprises a large portion of their respective constituencies. Both also serve on related subcommittees, Scott as chair of the Subcommittee on Commodity Exchanges, Energy, and Credit, and Costa as chair of the Subcommittee on Livestock and Foreign Agriculture. There are distinct differences between California and Georgia agriculture, and how those differences manifest themselves in federal farm policy will be a large part of the process of selecting the next committee chair. See more on the fight for House Ag Committee leadership.