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Northey says hold on his appointment not uncommon in DC

Iowa Ag Secretary and USDA nominee Bill Northey says the hold on his confirmation is not that uncommon in Washington.

“I found out I’m part of a group of folks that have been on hold before.  There’s a lot of folks that have served in Washington in different roles, and some of them have been on hold for a little bit before they got there.  And I didn’t realize it.”

Northey’s nomination to become undersecretary for farm production and conservation at USDA has been held up by Texas Senator Ted Cruz, who’s seeking changes to the Renewable Fuel Standard.

“I guess if I can’t handle this uncertainty, I probably shouldn’t be moving to Washington or thinking about that.  It won’t be the last political kind of dynamic I’ll have to work myself through.  So I’m very comfortable in whatever the timing needs to be.”

Northey tells Brownfield he has not spoken to Cruz, but would be happy to discuss renewable fuels, or any other farm policy issue, with the Senator.