Brooke Rollins was traveling with her family to a Texas A&M vs. Auburn football game when she got the call that changed everything. On the other end of the line was President-elect Donald Trump asking her to be his secretary of agriculture.
The Aggies may have lost that day, but Rollins got the win of a lifetime, becoming only the second woman to lead USDA, with nearly 100,000 federal employees.
Soon she was making the rounds on Capitol Hill, meeting lawmakers from both sides of the aisle. They were the ones who ultimately would decide if she was up to the task. A Senate confirmation process followed, which Rollins says was surprisingly enjoyable. For her, it was a chance to become more familiar with the legislative branch.
Rollins may have been an unknown to many farmers; however, she served as domestic policy adviser during Trump’s first term. That gave her a bird’s-eye view of how Cabinet members were selected, but what nominees experienced was new to her.
“Getting to know the Republicans was awesome, but so was spending time with Democrats on the ag committee,” she told Farm Progress hours after her confirmation. “We had back and forth on things we agreed on but also things we didn’t agree on. … It was always very respectful.”
The Senate confirmed Rollins, with 19 Democrats joining all Republicans in a resounding 72-28 vote. Her husband, Mark, and their four children were there to celebrate the occasion. Also on hand was a large contingent of family and friends eager to cheer the small-town Texas girl becoming agriculture’s highest-ranking public official.
“It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and one that I will forever treasure,” Rollins said.
“There are a lot of disagreements in Washington and a lot of things that divide us, but there are also things that unite us." — Brooke Rollins
From humble beginnings
Rollins hails from Glen Rose, Texas, a small town about an hour southwest of Fort Worth. She often brags about her mother, Helen Kerwin, who raised three daughters on her own while making $5 an hour at the public library.
Kerwin would later become mayor of Glen Rose. In 2024, she was elected to the Texas House of Representatives at age 78.
Growing up, Rollins spent summers on her family’s farm in Minnesota. She says her experiences with ranching and row crops there formed the foundation of her work and worldview.
She went on to earn an agriculture development degree at Texas A&M. She also was elected the school’s first female student body president.
“I do not want to be remembered as the first woman president,” she told reporters in 1994. “I want to be remembered as the best student body president ever.”
After graduating with honors, she earned a law degree from the University of Texas. She served as policy director for then-Gov. Rick Perry before leading The Texas Public Policy Foundation for 15 years. Those roles elevated her standing in Texas political circles.
Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, was one of those who got to know Rollins during her time in state politics. At her confirmation hearing, Cornyn told the Senate Agriculture Committee that confirming her should be a “no-brainer.” Among other things, he credited her for helping advance bipartisan legislation in both Texas and Washington, D.C.
“Everybody who knows Brooke Rollins loves Brooke, and I think you will, too, as you get to know her,” he told the committee.
Committed to Trump
Rollins makes no secret of her support for Trump. Following his loss in the 2020 election, Rollins formed the America First Policy Institute, a think tank advocating Trump policies.
Since becoming USDA secretary, Rollins has said multiple times that the only person who loves agriculture more than her is Trump. Whether it’s public remarks, media interviews or her own social media posts, she is quick to praise the president at nearly every turn. That is, when she’s not using those same outlets to ridicule Biden administration policies.
Despite the partisan rhetoric, Rollins says she remains committed to doing all she can to improve the lives of farmers and ranchers. According to her, it’s an area where all sides can find common ground.
“There are a lot of disagreements in Washington and a lot of things that divide us, but there are also things that unite us,” she said. “The fight for rural America and the fight for farmers and ranchers across the country is a bipartisan, maybe even a nonpartisan, issue that allows us to work together in the best tradition of America and Western civilization.”