EDITORIAL: Senate should move quickly to confirm Sonny Perdue as ag secretary

The nomination of former Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue as the U.S. secretary of agriculture seemed to take an unusually long time to germinate in the U.S. Senate, but it appears to be headed toward confirmation.

In a voice vote Thursday, Perdue’s nomination got a favorable report with bipartisan support from the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee. The nomination now will be considered by the full Senate.

Unlike most of the Trump administration’s nominees, Perdue didn’t draw strong fire in the committee hearing last week and doesn’t appear to be a Democratic Party target. He also has a resume that makes him a good fit for the position that oversees not just farm programs, but the nation’s nutrition, conservation and forestry programs, as well as programs aimed at rural America. A trained veterinarian, Perdue has agribusiness experience and obviously has government administrative experience from his eight years as chief executive of the state of Georgia. He also has extensive experience in trade negotiations from his time in the governorship.

Certainly here in Georgia — particularly Southwest Georgia — Perdue is a positive choice. Agriculture is our state’s No. 1 industry, and the lifeblood of the Southwest Georgia economy. While the office will require that Perdue — who will be the first Southerner to serve as a secretary in years — look at things from a national perspective when making decisions, it helps that the official who is in charge of programs and spending that is critical to our economy, farms and communities is intimately familiar with the impact his decisions will have on his home state.

Heading the U.S. Department of Agriculture is a challenge any time, but Perdue may be stepping into the role at a particularly critical point. In the broad blueprint that President Trump unveiled earlier this year for Fiscal year 2018 spending, he proposed to cut agriculture spending by 21 percent — $4.7 billion — to a total of $17.9 billion. A more detailed budget is expected in May, and Congress will determine final spending levels, but if USDA is subjected to deep cuts in discretionary spending, the department will need an able administrator like Perdue to ensure that the most is gotten for each dollar spent.

Perdue has the qualifications and abilities needed to do this job effectively. In a time when few things in Washington, D.C., happen smoothly, this nomination is one that Republicans and Democrats alike should be able to support.