Vilsack Out

I should at least give a nod to the big news (actually 24 hours old now). Despite the Washington Post deeming him a "near shoo-in," former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack appears to be off the list for Secretary of Agriculture. 

From Phil Brasher at the Des Moines Register: 

Former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack on Sunday said that he won't be the next agriculture secretary, ending speculation that an Iowan would snag the post important to a large swath of the state's economy.

In an e-mail, Vilsack said he had never been contacted by aides to President-elect Barack Obama about that position or any other.

"I would have to speculate that I was in fact in the running and further speculate as to why I was no longer. I do not think it prudent or appropriate to speculate about either," Vilsack said.

Who does that leave? It's hard to say, but you can check out some speculation and commentary from Tom Philpott here as well as Steph's post at Ethicurean from last week (just, ya know, ignore the part about Vilsack in that post). 

John Crabtree wrote in a post last week about the prospect of the former Iowa Governor at the helm of USDA.