Mississippi Delta Grassroots Caucus

Remembering the Great Federal Judge Billy Roy Wilson--Lawyer, Judge, Humorist, Mule Farmer

Tue, 28 Oct 2025 11:32:00 GMT

Remembering Federal Judge Bill Wilson–Lawyer, Judge. Humorist, Mule Farmer

Memo to Delta partners and supporters of justice nation-wide From Lee Powell, Delta Caucus Director

Arkansas and the nation lost a great champion of justice yesterday with the passing of Federal District Judge Billy Roy Willson. I was his first law clerk from 1993 to late 1995, and I know I join countless other lawyers and public servants who worked for or with him in saying he was one of the greatest jurists of our era.

Billy Roy Wilson was widely recognized as the most brilliant trial lawyer in Arkansas for many years before President William Jefferson Clinton nominated him to the federal bench in 1993. He ruled on many important cases for decades with a wise mind aimed at following the law and bringing about justice. Many legal and public policy experts across the region have commented that Clinton’s elevation of Judge Wilson to the federal court was one of his best actions as President.

Racial justice: Among the many important cases he decided was Conway School District v. Wilhoit 854 F. Supp. 1430 (Ed. Ark 1994) which prevented an attempt to dilute the rights of minority voters. He was deeply aware of Arkansas’ painful history in racial issues, and always had thoughtful and wise judgment for African Americans and other minorities. His many rulings on civil rights issues combined a progressive outlook for the downtrodden with tremendous experience in the law.

He ruled on a vast range of cases: He ruled with wisdom and a vast wealth of experience in the law over a broad range of cases on issues ranging from abortion to civil rights to criminal law and many others during four decades. He will be greatly missed.

There were so many important cases he ruled on that I can’t even scratch the surface here. If you have any thoughts, recollections or comments of any kind please pass them along to LeePowell@delta.comcastbiz.net (this is not a link so you will need to type in the email address) so that we may include them in this tribute.

Fair treatment of lawyers who came before his court: Judge Wilson was noted for his considerate treatment of the lawyers who came before him to practice. There was a limit to his patience, however.

I recall one day he was trying to soften the blow in ruling against a particular lawyer’s motion, saying, “Well, counsel for the defendant makes a strong argument and it’s a close question, but the court rules otherwise.” The lawyer mistakenly thought he saw an opening to change the judge’s mind, filed a motion to re-consider and talked on way too long about how the judge had called it a close question.

The judge patiently listened for a while, but then said, “Well the court has thought about this issue at length, but on further reflection, it’s actually not a close question. Motion denied.”

Anecdote with President Clinton: I recall visiting the White House in 1995, and President Clinton asked how Judge Wilson’s heart was–referring to an episode that thankfully turned out to be minor heart trouble. I said he was doing fine and dispensing justice right and left.

Then Clinton acted like he suddenly became very serious and said, “When you go back to Little Rock you need to remind Judge Wilson that my appointment of him to the federal court was only during ‘good behavior.’”

When I reported back to the judge about the POTUS’ comment, he replied, “Well, they should have told me about that requirement before I took this job.”

Case with Ken Starr before Judge Wilson’s court: Even in the most controversial cases, Wilson was imperturbable as far as ruling according to the law. When Webb Hubbell was indicted by the special prosecutor Ken Starr, Wilson decided to take Hubbell’s plea (which happened to be “guilty”). Starr and the crowd who were determined to portray anyone and everyone in any way connected to President Clinton as grossly corrupt, tried to make a big deal out of Wilson agreeing to take a plea. He was mistakenly thinking that everybody in Arkansas is very close to everybody else.

Actually, Wilson and Hubbell had known each other when they were both prominent lawyers in Arkansas, but they were not close and there was no reason for Wilson to recuse on something as routine as taking a plea—which does not usually require much judgment beyond determining if the defendant is drunk, mentally imbalanced or otherwise not competent to state whether he was innocent or not.

A special prosecutor complaining to a federal law clerk?I remember Ken Starr taking it upon himself to complain to me at the time that Judge Wilson was hearing Hubbell’s plea. I was surprised that a special prosecutor would be complaining to a federal law clerk about his boss’ ruling, and I just said taking a plea is about as routine as it gets and left it at that. Did he think I was going to go to my boss and tell him that Ken Starr told him to reverse his decision? I wasn’t going to argue with the man.

After taking the plea, Wilson did recuse as far as presiding over the rest of the case. This was on the basis that while the judge had no reason to be biased for or against Hubbell, Wilson was a Clinton appointee to the bench and Hubbell was a Clinton appointee to the federal executive branch, so it could give the appearance of impropriety. I thought that was the right decision.

The Wall Street Journal, true to their inaccurate and condescending view of Arkansas, said that Wilson’s decision showed that there is still some honor left in the state. But it just wasn’t a very difficult decision, either in taking the plea or in recusing from the trial. There was no big question of “honor,” and of course the insinuation was that most lawyers and other public officials in Arkansas were unethical and Wilson was an exception to the shameful rule.

Experience at the Rasputin Mule Farm: Judge Wilson also had distinguished stature as a mule farmer. I recall one time when he invited a group of law clerks and other federal court personnel out to the Rasputin Mule Farm and we had the honor of riding his mules. My mule unfortunately was not very mobile and unusually stubborn, even by mule standards. The critter stopped at a fence where there were some plants growing and just stood there feasting for a long time. I couldn’t get the mule to budge an inch.

The others rode off, and Judge Wilson finally wondered what had happened to me. So he rode back and hit the mule hard enough to get it to start moving back to the mule farm. The mule knew who was boss. I was glad that a federal judge had rescued me so I was not marooned in the middle of a field in rural Arkansas.

Comments from Harry Truman Moore, distinguished lawyer based in Paragould, Arkansas, who knew Judge Wilson for many years:

“At a meeting of lawyers in Arkansas many years ago, I asked one of the best younger lawyers I knew, William R. Wilson, as he was then known, to speak on the Voir Dire process, another noted lawyer for a criminal case, and Bill Wilson for a civil case. They wooed the crowd. One young lawyer from Springfield, MO., called them “a pair of thoroughbreds.” Judge Wilson would have been happier had they called him a ‘mule,” which was the nickname some people had used for him back then.

We didn’t do criminal work in the federal courts, and when we had a client in need of such services, Bill Wilson was the first person we called.

It was a pleasure to have known him, to have visited with him over the years about politics, and to watch him lead his mule team in a Presidential inaugural parade. My condolences to Judge Compton. We have lost a true leader, and a legend.” H.T. Moore

On another note about Judge Wilson:

The Amon Clopton rule for avoiding over-work: Wilson was a hard worker, but also had common sense about avoiding over-work, citing what he called the “Amon Clopton rule.” Amon Clopton was a worker out in west Arkansas where Wilson was from, and he learned from one of his colleagues who worked so hard one day that he was too worn out to show up for work the next. So Amon’s rule was, “Don’t ever work so hard one day that it keeps you from working at all the next day.”

Well, we feel it’s important to pay tribute to a great man when he passes. Again, if you have any comments to pass on, please do so to LeePowell@delta.comcastbiz.net

Thanks and Rest in Peace for Judge Wilson.

I will now invoke the Amon Clopton rule and stop working for a while.

Lee Powell, Executive Director, Delta Grassroots Caucus (202) 360-6347 leepowell@delta.comcastbiz.net

Delta News Conference Calls for Restoring Food Aid & Continuing USDA Hunger Report

Thu, 02 Oct 2025 10:57:00 GMT

Delta Caucus News Conference Calls for Restoration of Food Aid Cuts and USDA Hunger Report

The Delta Caucus held a news conference including Joel Berg of Hunger Free America; Annette Dove of the TOPPS nonprofit in Pine Bluff, Arkansas; former Clinton administration appointee and Mississippi native Wilson Golden, and Caucus Director Lee Powell.

The news conference was including in the news highlights by Arkansas Public Radio at KUAR.org

Annette Dove of TOPPS in Pine Bluff has been described by the national media as “America’s Mother Theresa” for her dynamic programs on hunger and nutrition and a broad range of other services for people in Jefferson, County AR.

She said Arkansas makes it too difficult to access SNAP. One third of Arkansas children who get school lunch do not get school breakfast, which is probably the most important meal of the day for kids to get nutrition to have nutrition for their morning activities.

TOPPS feeds many children aged 18 and under: they fed 700 children a day this summer, and are feeding 400 children after school now.

Dove said that “we are seeing a lot of senior citizens, a lot of working poor. Some people are living in their cars or motel rooms. We are seeing hunger numbers growing in Jefferson County.”

The application process can be complicated for many people, and the rules and regulations are often difficult to understand. The benefits are often too small–after providing lengthy technical assistance to one person,she found that she only qualified for a few dollars.

The presentations of Joel Berg, CEO of Hunger Free America, a national hunger organization based in New York, have been described as a combination of watching CNN, Comedy Central, while listening to stories from the Old Testament.

Berg also emphasized that it is too difficult for people to gain access to SNAP. Arkansas has one of the lowest rates of participation in SNAP, with 41% of people in the state eligible for SNAP not receiving them.

On a more positive note, Arkansas recently adopted universal school meals and Gov. Sarah Sanders and the legislature deserve credit for that action. But again, one third of the kids who get school lunch don’t get the even more important school breakfast.

Berg pointed out that the Trump administration cut $186 billion out of food assistance, and $930 million of those cuts came in Arkansas, which has the second worst food insecurity levels in the country.

Berg said that it was hypocritical the way Arkansas and other states micromanage what people can buy with their SNAP benefits. While higher income people often buy soft drinks and other foods with high sugar content and low nutritional value, they hypocritically criticize lower income people for buying the same kinds of food with their SNAP benefits.

Berg said that Hunger Free America constantly encourages people to eat a healthy diet, but there shouldn’t be a double standard applied to people of different income levels.

The Hunger Free America CEO said that 7% of Arkansas’ population get SNAP, while about 40% of Arkansas people are obese.

The Make America Healthy Again report praises WIC as an exemplary program, but then recent legislation backed by the administration and its allies in Congress cut the fruit and vegetable allotments in WIC.

Berg said “No superpower in the history of the world has remained a superpower if it failed to feed its own people. No economy has remained strong if tens of millions of its people–1 in 5 or 1 in 6 kids–can’t afford enough food.”

He said that if the current government shutdown lasts into November, the lack of SNAP benefits will likely be cataclysmic. The Delta Caucus again encourages the 8 state Delta’s Congressional delegations to end the shutdown ASAP.

Wilson Golden, is a Clinton administration Presidential appointee. He described his work as one of the team of four managers of the Clinton administration’s Delta Regional Initiative, amiably referred to as the “Gang of Four” (Wilson Golden, Lee Powell, Harold Gist, and Al Eisenberg). Sadly, Harold Gist and Al Eisenberg are no longer living, but their work lives in on many of the community and economic development initiatives they worked to create, including the Delta Regional Authority signed into law in December of 2000.

Wilson Golden said the food aid cuts will have an especially dire impact on his native state of Mississippi, which has the worst food insecurity rate in the country at 15.3%.

Golden and all the speakers at the conference emphasized that the food aid cuts and termination of USDA hunger reports will inflict severe harm on vulnerable populations in Mississippi, Arkansas, Louisiana (currently with the three highest food insecurity) and the other Delta states. They are being severely damaged by the government shutdown.

Caucus Director Lee Powell joined the other Delta Caucus partners to call for the restoration of food stamps (SNAP) benefits that were sharply cut this summer, as well as continuation of the USDA’s traditional annual hunger reports that inform the public about the state of food security in America.

Almost 240,000 Arkansans are enrolled in SNAP (food stamps), which is a vital bulwark against hunger.

Powell said USDA’s annual Household Food Security Report has informed the country for many years about the state of food security, unfortunately often listing Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama (see table on food insecurity below) at or near the bottom regarding hunger in America. We may not always like the information in it, but we need to know the facts.

The USDA report is compiled by dedicated, nonpartisan food security professionals and the national administration’s claim that it was “overly politicized” and “rife with inaccuracies” is erroneous.

Food stamps not only fight hunger but also promote economic progress: every dollar of food stamp benefits that are spent generate about $1.50 in economic activity.

–Feedback from Delta Caucus partners:

Delta Caucus director Lee Powell, former USDA official in the 1990s, said, “The budget cuts the administration and its Congressional allies pushed through Congress in July will mean 3 million people will not qualify for SNAP or “food stamp” benefits. The ending of the respected report will make it much harder for people to know the facts about food insecurity.”

Joel Berg, CEO of Hunger Free America and former USDA official, who has devoted great attention to hunger in the Delta for many years, said, “A North Korean-style attempted cover-up of reality won’t hide the reality of soaring hunger nationwide – and in the Delta – due to a number of problems that are entirely or partially the fault of President Trump: slashed food aid, job losses, and still-high inflation.”

Mike Marshall, long-time Delta regional leader and former Alternate Federal Co-Chair of the Delta Regional Authority from Sikeston, Missouri, said ” “These cuts are hurting the Southeast Missouri Food Bank efforts to feed the hungry in a lot of places in southern Missouri.”

Wilson Golden, Mississippi native and Clinton administration appointee who served on the team that worked to create the Delta Regional Authority in 2000, whose childhood years were spent on a north Mississippi cotton farm. Wilson Golden knows firsthand the profound negative impact of the current federal funding cutbacks, saying:—

“After decades spent developing and funding a sturdy infrastructure of national, state and local agricultural programs and agencies, along comes the current administration’s wrecking ball,” said Golden. Now is simply an “all hands on deck” moment.

Nonprofit professionals such as Bobby Kogan of the Center for American Progress opposed the administration’s actions. Kogan said, “Trump is cancelling an annual government survey that measures hunger in America, rather than allow it to show hunger increasing under his tenure.”

Feedback to Congressional delegation:

The Caucus calls on Sen. John Boozman, Rep. Rick Crawford, Rep. French Hill and other Members of the Arkansas and other Delta states’ Congressional delegations to restore the cuts and reverse the decision to end the highly respected, informative hunger report.

We have greatly appreciated Sen. Boozman’s longstanding support for food security initiatives over the years, and Rep. Hill and Rep. Crawford have also been supportive of USDA programs.

“Gov. Sarah Sanders has had a reputation for concern and action on food insecurity issues, and we ask for her to step up and ask the administration to stop these attacks that undermine the fight against hunger in Arkansas,” Powell said.

The administration claims that the economy is basically in great shape, when in reality current reports on jobs and other economic indicators are trending in a negative direction.

President Trump is also trying to take credit for progress that happened under the Biden administration: The Census Bureau report earlier in September indicated a decline in the national poverty rate from 11% in 2023 to 10.6% the next year—but that improvement took place before Trump took office.

The cuts to food stamps are causing hunger to increase in the Delta and across the country.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON FOOD INSECURITY

Food Insecurity Rates in 2025 as documented by the nonprofit, nonpartisan World Population Review had Mississippi, Arkansas and Louisiana with the three worst food insecurity rates, and six of the bottom ten states were in the Greater Delta, with Alabama 7th, Kentucky 9th and Missouri 10th.

The 10 states with the worst food insecurity levels (Delta states in bold):

Mississippi– 15.3%

Arkansas–15%

Louisiana–14.5%

West Virginia–14%

Oklahoma–13.8%

Texas–13.7%

Alabama–13.1%

South Carolina–12.6%

Kentucky–12.3%

Missouri–12%

The annual hunger report was a frequent if painful reminder that the Greater Delta suffers from the worst food insecurity levels in the country, but we need to know about the problems if we are going to address them.

The administration’s silencing of this vital report will make it easier for pro-Trump politicians in the Delta to erroneously claim that our region does not have serious problems with poverty and food insecurity.

Memorandum on USDA Reorganization Issues

Wed, 06 Aug 2025 07:34:00 GMT

Delta Grassroots Caucus

August 6, 2025

Memorandum to Delta Region Members of Congress and concerned citizens about USDA Reorganization

From:

The Delta Grassroots Caucus (Lee Powell, executive director) and Caroline Thorpe, a USDA official for 35 years who retired recently.

Lee Powell is director of the Delta Caucus, a nonprofit grassroots advocacy organization for the 8-state Greater Delta; former Presidential appointee at USDA in the Clinton administration; earlier a senior aide to a Congressman representing the heavily agricultural First District in Arkansas; originally from Little Rock. Caroline is Lee Powell’s wife and they live in Waldorf, Maryland in the Washington, DC area.

5030 Purslane Place Waldorf, Maryland 20603 Phone: 240-994-4207 Email: carothorpe78@gmail.com and Leepowell@delta.comcastbiz.net

Re: Comments on the Senate Hearing: Agriculture and Nutrition Service Review of USDA Reorganization Proposal – July 30, 2025

We are writing to provide formal comments on the proposed USDA reorganization and to raise serious concerns regarding statements made by USDA Deputy Secretary Judge Stephen Vaden during the July 30, 2025, Senate hearing.

USDA nutrition, rural development and agriculture programs are absolutely vital for the Greater Delta Region from southern Illinois down through Arkansas and Mississippi to New Orleans, with our largely small town and rural areas, unfortunately high food insecurity in many areas, and heavily agricultural productivity.

Importance of having a sufficient number of senior personnel based in the Washington, DC offices: This is constructive and efficient, and the 4,600 employees currently based there are still much less than 10 percent of the workforce of USDA. It is highly beneficial to have senior personnel, the administrators of key agencies, Under Secretaries, and other key offices located in the Washington, DC headquarters, where they can gather in one conference room and resolve inter-agency and department-wide issues, as well as consult with Members of Congress and other major institutions. As a senior official at USDA in the 1990s to 2001, Lee Powell found it efficient to have all the top personnel at the Washington, DC headquarters where they can easily convene and consult in person.

Executive Summary below, followed by a detailed memorandum further on.

Executive summary:

Comments and Recommendation Based on the Senate Hearing: Agriculture and Nutrition Service Review of USDA Reorganization Proposal – July 30, 2025

First of all, we would emphasize that the reorganization was presented as a fait accompli with very little prior consultation with stakeholders. The Greater Delta Region is a vast, largely rural and agricultural region across eight states, yet none of the five regional hubs is close to this huge area for which USDA is so vital. Kansas City Missouri is at the opposite end of the large state of Missouri from the southeast Missouri Delta and very distant from the rest of the region. The other four hubs are not even remotely close to the Delta—Indianapolis, Indiana; Raleigh, North Carolina; Fort Collins, Colorado; and Salt Lake City, Utah.

Memphis would be a logical and great choice for one of the regional hubs: We know all regions can’t be included, but Memphis is a large city with an existing, extensive USDA facility (the Memphis Cotton Classing Office) in the heart of the 8-state Greater Delta. Adding a regional hub in Memphis would be a great choice, although it appears that they have already made their decision. Again, this points out that they erred seriously in not engaging in real consultation with the stakeholders.

We are writing to provide several recommendations and formal comments on the proposed USDA reorganization. The hearing raises serious concerns regarding statements made by USDA Deputy Secretary Judge Stephen Vaden at the Senate hearing. We offer the following points for consideration:

1) Cost and Disruption of Relocation: Ninety percent of USDA’s approximately 98, 000 employees currently work in rural areas working on agriculture, nutrition and rural development issues directly with the people they serve. The great majority of USDA employees already work on the ground across the country. Therefore, relocating another 2,600 employees from the National Capital Region (NCR) to the Midwest and the West (Utah) makes no sense. Thus, the USDA reorganization is a solution in search of a problem that does not exist.

2) George Washington Carver Center(GWCC): Judge Vaden implied that most of the USDA buildings in the National Capital Region are decrepit. GWCC is a state-of-the-art facility in Beltsville, Maryland. It was renovated in 2022 and should continue to be a USDA worksite, which would reduce relocation costs.

3)Most of USDA South Building has been recently renovated: Contrary to claims, over 70% of the South Building has been recently renovated. Discarding this historic property without cost-benefit analysis would waste taxpayer dollars. The 30 percent of the renovation not yet done should be completed.

5) Housing Costs and Relocation in Salt Lake City, Utah: The proposed relocation hub of Salt Lake City has housing costs higher than much of the DC region. Moving employees there does not solve cost problems and only disrupts work.

Primary Recommendations:

1) Retain USDA employees in the George Washington Carver Center, a state-of-the-art building renovated in 2022. This would minimize cost and disruption to USDA’s mission-critical work and preserve institutional expertise, while maintaining operational resilience.

2) Make the South Building a Multi-use Agency building for USDA, Homeland Security and any other Defense/security Department or Agency. House all National Capital Region (NCR) staff here, and USDA would have no other external building other than the BARC. This simplifies matters.

DETAILED MEMORANDUM

Re: Comments on the Senate Hearing: Agriculture and Nutrition Service Review of USDA Reorganization Proposal – July 30, 2025

Caroline recently retired from USDA after 35 years of service in the Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), and Grain Inspection Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA); Lee Powell director of the Delta Caucus, former Congressional aide to the agricultural 1st District of Arkansas, and a former USDA official as well. We offer the following points for your consideration:

1)Cost and Disruption of Relocation: Ninety percent of USDA’s approximately 98,000 employees currently work in rural areas working on agriculture, nutrition and rural development issues with the people they serve. The great majority of USDA employees already work directly on the ground across the country. Therefore, relocating 2,600 employees from the National Capital Region (NCR) to the Midwest makes no sense. Thus, this is a solution in search of a problem that does not exist.

This will impose significant costs, far-reaching service disruptions, and security risks. Relocation estimates may exceed $75,000 per employee, which will take years to recover. Judge Vaden did not have figures on the cost of moving employees, relocation costs or work analysis. The USDA needs to provide cost analysis.

2) George Washington Carver Center (GWCC) is a state-of-the-art facility: Judge Vaden implied that most of the USDA buildings in the National Capital Region are decrepit. To the contrary, GWCC is a state-of-the-art facility in Beltsville, Maryland. It was renovated in 2022, and its sale would be a waste of taxpayers’ money. The building could house an estimated 1,500 employees and meets congressional space utilization requirements of being at 60 percent capacity. Retaining staff at this site would reduce relocation costs and disruption.

3. Most of USDA South Building has been recently renovated: Contrary to claims, over 70% of the South Building has been recently renovated. Discarding this historic property without cost-benefit analysis would waste taxpayer dollars. A critical point is that five of seven wings of the USDA South Building have been newly renovated; Specifically, wings two, three, four, five and seven. Judge Vaden kept mentioning this building was expensive to maintain. While we do not dispute this, please consider there are many other historic DC buildings that are very expensive to maintain.

Recommendation: USDA should provide Congress with a cost-benefit analysis and evaluate whether it is actually more cost effective to locate employees in the South Building rather than relocating them in other cities.

Recommendation: Should recommendation two of this memo not be considered, perhaps the South Building could be a multi-agency use building as Homeland Security already has a number of offices here and the military uses this building numerous times as a staging center during large events in the NCR. USDA could put all NCR employees in this building, with Homeland Security or other agency offices filling the remaining space. USDA would then simplify and get rid of all other buildings other than BARC in the NCR.

4)Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (BARC): This center is critical for agricultural research and national security. Relocation risks extensive loss of expertise and disruption of vital long-term research. Selling BARC would leave us vulnerable to security issues like bioterrorism and disruption of ongoing projects. We did not hear a clear plan on where this critical center will be located or funding for such a move, which will take years.

Further, the best and highly specialized staff needed for this mission-critical work will be harder to hire outside the Washington, DC region. The long-term research would likely be disrupted, and there is a high-risk of long-term loss of institutional knowledge and capability should the scientists choose not to relocate. These people and the results from their work are priceless and beneficial to every American.

5)Housing Costs and Relocation in Salt Lake City, Utah: The proposed relocation hub of Salt Lake City, has housing costs higher than much of the DC region. This undermines the rationale of relocation as a cost-saving measure. Caroline Thorpe lives in Charles County, MD, a suburb of Washington, where the median cost of a house is $435,000.

Meanwhile, Judge Vaden said that in Washington DC, houses were selling for a million dollars, using the example of Arlington, VA. This is an unfair comparison as Arlington is an unusually expensive area that is also the headquarters site for the new Amazon offices. This does not reflect the housing market of the entire Washington, DC area.

Recommendation: Therefore, we would propose another city than Salt Lake City. Caroline Thorpe was there approximately a year ago for a technology conference. Without prompting, many locals consistently complained about the escalating cost of living there due to the increase in technology companies.

6)National Security Risks of Moving the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (BRAC): Disrupting agricultural research operations weakens biosecurity preparedness and jeopardizes U.S. food security. We already had two Chinese researchers try to import a deadly wheat fungus earlier this year. The disruptions of USDA’s reorganization will leave us vulnerable to bioterrorism for which we will not be prepared. It is absurd to move the research center without a plan or funding.

We were very concerned that many of the Senators at the hearing did not express a stronger concern about a national agricultural research strategic plan from Washington, DC. While concerned about their research centers located in their states, they did not probe the implications of the dissolution of the BARC. To disrupt research plans and the BARC at the NCR means we may lose our highest researchers and critical plans.

7) Workforce Impact: USDA has already lost 15,000 employees. Forcing relocation will result in additional attrition, further eroding mission capacity. Historical data showing retention estimates are overly optimistic. Further, Secretary Rollins said that she expects that only 50-70 percent of employees to be relocated will stay with USDA. The lessons from the relocations under Secretary Purdue indicate that Secretary Rollins’ estimate may be overstated.

Further, employees will be hurt by the personal moving expenses (which should be covered but may not be fully covered depending on funding availability) and other disruptions of relocation. Right now, employees are being thrown into open critical positions with little preparation. Currently staff need time to develop and adjust to their new work to ensure the effectiveness of USDA. Therefore, we suggest a serious reconsideration of the wisdom of pursuing the reorganization.

This proposal appears aimed at reducing the federal workforce rather than improving USDA’s efficiency or effectiveness. This plan would actually reduce efficiency. A proper reorganization must include rigorous analysis of mission functions, staffing needs, and transition costs—none of which have been provided.

Primary Recommendations:

1) Retain USDA employees in the George Washington Carver Center, a state-of-the-art building renovated in 2022. This would minimize cost and disruption to USDA’s mission-critical work and preserve institutional expertise, while maintaining operational resilience.

2) Make the South Building a Multi-use Agency building for USDA, Homeland Security and any other Defense/security Department or agencies. House all National Capital Region (NCR) staff here and USDA would have no other external building other than the BARC. This simplifies matters.

Thank you for your attention to this critical matter. we respectfully request your advocacy to ensure a responsible, data-driven approach to USDA reorganization that safeguards both our agricultural security and federal workforce. Sincerely,

Caroline Thorpe is a USDA Retired Employee Who Served from March of 1990-May of 2025; Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS); Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS); and Grain Inspection Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA).

Lee Powell is executive director of the Delta Grassroots Caucus, a nonprofit advocacy organization for the region from southern Illinois and Missouri to New Orleans, Louisiana; he was a Presidential appointee in the Clinton administration at USDA headquarters in Washington, DC from 1995 to January, 2001, serving in Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), and Rural Development; earlier he was an aide to a senior Member of Congress serving the highly agricultural First District of Arkansas; originally from Little Rock, AR.

Supporters of Sen. Fulbright Oppose Effort to Re-Name Kennedy Center for President Trump

Thu, 31 Jul 2025 12:23:00 GMT

“Long-Time Supporters of Sen. Fulbright including Biographer Lee Powell Oppose Effort to Re-name the Kennedy Center after President Trump”

A long-time associate and biographer of Sen. J. William Fulbright and many other supporters of Fulbright’s legacy oppose Rep. Bob Onder’s (R-MO) bill to re-name the Kennedy Center after President Donald Trump.

Fulbright is the main founder of the Kennedy Center, advocating for its creation and passing appropriations to build the Kennedy Center.

“Fulbright’s cerebral, thoughtful approach to public policy issues and his founding role in the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts are diametrically opposed to President Trump’s anti-intellectual, chaotic strategy of sowing confusion and chaos,” said Lee Powell, who knew Fulbright for 20 years and wrote two books about him—one with a foreword by Fulbright and another with afterword by the senator.

The Delta Caucus and other civic-minded Delta organizations call on the region’s Congressional delegations, especially the Arkansas Congressional delegation, to block this improper effort to tamper with the legacy of both the Kennedy Center and Senator Fulbright.

Fulbright sought to make the Kennedy a renowned opera, ballet and cultural center of which all Americans could be proud. The senator would have been mortified by Trump’s effort to politicize such an iconic educational institution.

The Kennedy Center is not just a building; it is a symbol of American commitment to the arts, education, and international understanding. To erase that symbolism in favor of political theater would be a grave insult to the very ideals that Fulbright, Kennedy, and countless public servants have upheld.

Fulbright introduced legislation on Nov. 26, 1963 to name the institution after President Kennedy and appropriate the last $5 million for its construction. Mrs. John F. Kennedy expressed her appreciation to him for his efforts, and the senator replied: “Dear Jackie: Nothing I could do could ever begin to express my appreciation and gratitude that this country was privileged to have had such a President, even for so short a time.”

Kennedy’s niece Maria Shriver said Onder’s bill made her “blood boil.” Our sentiments exactly.

Rep. Onder made the ludicrous and sycophantic comment that “I cannot think of a more ubiquitous symbol of American exceptionalism in the arts, entertainment and popular culture than President Trump.”

Onder gives us quite a news flash that Trump is an expert in the arts, when he has revealed he knows little or nothing about the work of the Kennedy Center. In earlier comments Trump called for the Kennedy Center to bring in Broadway productions, when Broadway shows have been a regular feature at the center for a long time.

Trump fired the former Kennedy board members who were appointed for their involvement in the arts and replaced them with political supporters. He also called for recognizing Luciano Pavarotti with the Kennedy Honors, when Pavarotti was given that award 24 years ago.

Jeffrey Seller, producer of the Pulitzer-Prize winning “Hamilton,” gave the last word on this issue in cancelling upcoming performances at the center because his show was not consistent with “a new spirit of partisanship in the national treasure that is the Kennedy Center.”

Wilson Golden, a veteran Delta regional advocate from Mississippi, said “We should be respectful of President Kennedy and honor his memory through the Center—and this is not partisan in any form, shape or manner.”

(Note: Lee Powell is author of J. William Fulbright and His Time, foreword by President Bill Clinton and afterword by Sen. J. William Fulbright (1995); and J. William Fulbright and America’s Lost Crusade, foreword by J. William Fulbright (1084). Powell was a Presidential appointee in the Clinton administration and is executive director of the Delta Caucus. Most of the Delta Caucus partners agree with this statement, although we have some Trump supporters in our group and want to respect their wishes. This is based on Lee Powell’s knowledge of and connection with the Fulbright legacy.)

Supporters of Sen. Fulbright Oppose Effort to Re-Name Kennedy Center for President Trump

Thu, 31 Jul 2025 12:23:00 GMT

“Long-Time Supporters of Sen. Fulbright including Biographer Lee Powell Oppose Effort to Re-name the Kennedy Center after President Trump”

Fulbright is the main founder of the Kennedy Center, advocating for its creation and passing appropriations to build the Kennedy Center.

Kennedy’s niece Maria Shriver said Onder’s bill made her “blood boil.” Our sentiments exactly.

Trump fired the former Kennedy board members who were appointed for their involvement in the arts and replaced them with political supporters. He also called for recognizing Luciana Pavarotti with the Kennedy Honors, when Pavarotti was given that award 24 years ago.

Brief summary and speakers for June 26-27, 2025 Delta Caucus Zoom meeting

Mon, 07 Jul 2025 05:48:00 GMT

Agenda for June 26-27, 2025 Delta Caucus Zoom meeting

June 26 session is 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Note: There are majority and minority views in our organization.

The majority of our partners do not agree with the Trump administration’s cuts to major job creation, education, health care, nutrition, rural development, and diversity initiatives.

A minority of our partners are supportive of the administration’s agenda.

We gave time for pro and con views of the administration’s economic policies during the June 26-27 Zoom meeting.

We noted at the meeting that former Secretary of the Treasury Larry Summers–who usually disagrees with Trump–said that the President is open to “backing off of bad ideas.” We would encourage the President and his supporters to back off from the bad ideas of making major cuts to revered job creation, education, health care, nutrition and related initiatives.

5 p.m.—Lee Powell, Director, Delta Grassroots Caucus

5:10 p.m.– Fulbright Scholar Harrison

5:20 p.m.—Janis Kearney, author of Cotton Field of Dreams and many other books; White House aide to President Bill Clinton

5:30 p.m.–Mike Marshall, former Alternate Federal Co-Chair, Delta Regional Authority, former Mayor of Sikeston, Missouri, long-time senior partner of the Delta Caucus

5:40—Jeff Kolath, Director, Sultana Disaster Museum, Marion, Arkansas, on the Sultana explosion, the worst maritime disaster in American history

June 27, 2025—9:30 a.m. To 11:30 a.m.

9:30 a.m., June 27, 2025—Mireya Reith, Director, Arkansas United (nonprofit working on Hispanic issues)

Sikeston Missouri speaker Joey Hayes

Hunger and poverty

10 a.m., June 27—Sylvia Blain, CEO, Hunger Relief Alliance

10:10 a.m., June 27, Dorothy Grady Scarbrough, Mississippians Engaged in Agriculture (MEGA)

10:20 a.m.—Mayor Ora Stevens, Marianna, Arkansas, on the criminalization of poverty

AEDC speaker

10:30 a.m.—Matt Twyford, Arkansas Economic Development Commission (AEDC) Director of Community Development

Differing views on the impact of the Trump administration’s economic policies

10:45 a.m.—Joel Berg, CEO, Hunger Free America, speaking on the damaging impact of Trump administration policies reducing nutrition programs and other safety net policies

11 a.m.—Rhonda Belford, Chair of the Hardin County Republican Party, Delegate for President Donald Trump to the 2020 and 2024 Republican National Conventions, Republican National Committee member, Registered Nurse.

11:15 a.m.—Brad Cole, Director, Illinois Municipal League

11:30 a.m.–adjourn

Thanks again—Lee Powell

Tribute to a True-Blue Trooper for the Delta: Harvey Joe Sanner

Mon, 03 Feb 2025 09:46:00 GMT

Tribute to a True-Blue Trooper for the Greater Delta Region: Harvey Joe Sanner

(NOTE: This message was published as an article in the editorial section of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette on Feb. 7, 2025.)

The Greater Delta Region lost a veteran true-blue trooper with the passing of Harvey Joe Sanner of Des Arc, Arkansas.

Harvey Joe Sanner tirelessly advocated for family farmers, the Greater Delta Region as a whole, infrastructure improvements, economic growth, and the fight against hunger and poverty.

A half-century of grassroots advocacy: Harvey Joe was president of the American Agriculture Movement, a stalwart partner of the 8-state Mississippi Delta Grassroots Caucus, an activist for the Democratic Party at state, local and national levels, and a friend and loyal supporter of prominent Arkansas leaders including Gov. and then President Bill Clinton, US Sen. Dale Bumpers, US Sen. David Pryor, Congressman Bill Alexander, and many others.

Tractorcade: In 1979, Harvey Joe Sanner was one of less than 3,000 farmers from all over the country who drove their tractors to Washington, DC to call attention to the national government the dire economic plight of many family farmers in America.

One of Harvey Joe’s sons,Matt Sanner of Searcy, Arkansas, said to the Delta Caucus that “He was the very greatest dad and man, and I still aspire to be like him.” Many other leaders from across the region expressed similar sentiments and several of them are quoted below in this message.

Opening up markets for farmers: He was a strong and knowledgeable advocate for developing trade–especially in food and medicine–between the United States and Cuba. He believed–accurately, in our view–that the embargo did not change Cuban policy domestically or internationally, prevented the Cuban people from gaining access to nutritious American farm products, and deprived American producers of substantial markets in Cuba.

Sanner traveled to Cuba to meet in person with then Cuban leader Fidel Castro to discuss the economic benefits to both countries of opening up trade. The Arkansas was a member of a family that included generations of farmers. He often pointed out that Arkansas’ prolific rice farmers would be among the greatest beneficiaries of trade to Cuba.

He emphasized that opening up trade in food and medicine would benefit both countries, and would of course not provide the Cubans with any materials that might have any military potential.

Sanner had great political courage and would stand his ground on the issues regardless of whether it was controversial or not. One poignant example was his constant, outspoken support for Congressman Alexander when he was sharply criticized in right-wing quarters for calling for farm and medicine trade to Cuba.

Delta Caucus Director Lee Powell said “Harvey Joe Sanner was a stalwart, knowledgeable and effective advocate for the Greater Delta’ community and economic progress. He was a strong presence at every Delta Caucus meeting and most other public policy meetings in Arkansas and other Delta states for over 50 years. He will greatly be missed.”

Powell recalled that his father, James O. Powell, who was editorial editor and later senior columnist of the old Arkansas Gazette from 1959 to 1987, referred to the “ubiquitous” Harvey Joe Sanner, because he was always there at every public policy meeting for half a century.

Powell added that “Harvey Joe was a very intelligent man who was probably one of the few people in Arkansas who knew what the word ‘ubiquitous’ meant” (just kidding).

Powell recalled that in the mid-2000s at a packed Delta Caucus in the Clinton School of Public Service, President Clinton rose to speak, saw HJS in the crowd and immediately called out to him, “Hey, Harvey Joe”–he was one in a crowd of 100 people singled out for that heart-felt greeting.

Powell, a former aide to Rep. Alexander, recalled that when the Congressman was Chief Deputy Majority Whip and senior member of the Appropriations Committee, “Harvey Joe was a constant supporting presence for Alexander, who deeply appreciated his loyalty and advocacy for their mutual causes.”

Harry Truman Moore, attorney in northeast Arkansas, trusted friend and adviser to President Bill Clinton, Congressman Bill Alexander and other Arkansas leaders, said “Harvey Joe Sanner was one of the true believers and stalwart advocates for the Delta’s progress for many years.”

Kevin Smith, former aide to Gov. Bill Clinton on the Lower Mississippi Delta Development Commission, Arkansas senator, businessman and regional leader based in Helena, Arkansas, said “I knew Harvey Joe Sanner since the 1980s, as he fought at every opportunity to give a voice in particular to the every-day row crop farmers in Arkansas, and in general to stand up for the Delta region.”

Smith said “Harvey Joe is a hero of the Delta region. He worked closely with the late US senators Dale Bumpers and David Pryor and they were crazy about him as an advocate for agriculture and the Delta economy.”

Smith said “His impact and legacy might not ever be appreciated by many people who don’t know what he did for our state and region, but he didn’t do it for the recognition. He just loved the land and the people.”

Wilson Golden, Presidential appointee in the Clinton administration, Delta Caucus senior adviser, attorney, Mississippi native now residing in Georgia, said, “Harvey Joe Sanner was there every time the Delta Caucus met or the Clinton administration held a meeting in the region. He was always going to bat for the Delta in his common-sense, down-home style.”

Harvey Joe Sanner was 81. He was predeceased by: his parents, Joe Roscoe and Gladys Mae Chandler Sanner of Des Arc; and his brother Buddy Otis Sanner.

He is survived by: his wife Marilyn Burnett of Des Arc; his sons, Kelly Sanner of Des Arc and Matt Sanner of Searcy; his stepsons, Rodney Burnett (Sondra) of Cabot and Gary Burnett; and his brothers, Jim Sanner and Steve Sanner of Des Arc. He is also survived by five grandchildren, six great grandchildren, and five step grandchildren.

Please RSVP & Register by Paying Early $75 Registration Fees for June 26-27, 2025 Delta Caucus in Little Rock

Thu, 23 Jan 2025 12:12:00 GMT

Please RSVP for the June 26-27, 2025 Delta Caucus in Little Rock

Jan. 23, 2025

The Delta Caucus conference on regional community and economic development will be held June 26-27, 2025 in Little Rock. Registration, schedule and group hotel information are below.

SCHEDULE

The opening session will be June 26, 2025 from about 4:45 p.m. to 6:10 p.m. in Little Rock. Site TBD, although we will make every effort to use the Rotunda of the Arkansas State Capitol, which they do not reserve this far ahead of time.

There will be an informal session at the group hotel, the Comfort Inn & Suites Presidential restaurant at bar after the opening session from about 6:30 p.m. to 7:45 p.m. or whenever people want to stay. (Dinner on your own)

We have reserved the Great Hall of the Clinton Library for the June 27, 2025 session from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

We will invite President Bill Clinton, Gov. Sarah Sanders, Members of Congress, and other federal, state and local leaders from across the 8-state Greater Mississippi Delta Region. This is nonpartisan.

REGISTRATION FEES AND SPONSORSHIPS

You register by paying the $75 early registration fees by June 1, 2025.

After June 1 registration fees go up to $110.

The fastest and easiest way to pay the registration fees is to go on the website at mdgc.us and go to the link that says “Donate.”

GROUP DISCOUNT:

You can get a group discount for a group of four or more down to $50 and a discount down to $35 for a group of five or more.

ADDRESS TO SEND FEES OR SPONSORSHIPS

If you prefer to pay by check, please make out the check to “Delta Caucus” and mail to”

Delta Caucus

5030 Purslane Place

Waldorf, MD 20601

SPONSORSHIPS:

Sponsors will be recognized on the big placard on display at the conference, on the agendas distributed to all attendees, and other communications from the Delta Caucus.

LEAD SPONSORSHIP:

$3,000

MAJOR CO-SPONSORSHIP:

$1,000 for a foundation or other larger organization

$500 for a smaller organization or an individual

SPONSORSHIP:

$200

We have already received two sponsorships:

MAJOR CO-SPONSOR:

Illinois Municipal League

Sponsor:

Wilson Golden, senior adviser to the Delta Caucus, Presidential appointee in the Clinton administration, Mississippi native now residing in Georgia

Please send sponsorship checks to the Delta Caucus address at 5030 Purslane Place, Waldorf, MD 20601.

GROUP HOTEL

The group hotel is:

Comfort Inn & Suites Presidential

707 Interstate 30

Little Rock, AR 72202

To get the group discount of $119 for the night of June 26, 2025, contact the hotel at (501) 687-7700 and tell them you are with the Delta Caucus group.

We have a contract with the hotel and the personnel are thus obligated to include you in the Delta Caucus group, but sometimes if they have a new or not well-informed staffer who does not know about our group, you can ask to speak to the sales manager, Sierra Logan.

Most people stay the one night of June 26, check out in the morning and store their luggage, and then come back and pick up the luggage after the June 27 session on the morning and lunch is over.

We also have some rooms in our group for the night of Friday, June 27, 2025, for anyone who wishes to stay another night. There are significant places to visit in Little Rock including the Clinton Library and Center, the state Capitol, and the River Market area.

Please send in the registration fees ASAP because it complicates our planning and creates bottle-necks if many people wait until the last minute to register.

We hope to see you in Little Rock on June 26-27, 2025. Thanks–Lee Powell, executive director, Delta Grassroots Caucus (202) 360-6347

Statements from National Convention Delegates for Trump and Harris, Respectively

Mon, 04 Nov 2024 08:12:00 GMT

STATEMENTS FROM DELEGATES FROM BOTH MAJOR PARTIES

FIRST WE WILL HAVE RHONDA BELFORD’S STATEMENT FOR TRUMP

PLEASE SCROLL DOWN TO FIND THE STATEMENT OF WILSON GOLDEN FOR HARRIS

Statement from Rhonda Belford, Trump Delegate to the Republican National Convention

Thank you to Lee Powell with the Delta Caucus and Brad Cole of the Municipal League of Illinois for the opportunity to speak for a few moments during the Delta Caucus in support of President Donald J. Trump and J. D. Vance.

As I mentioned, President Trump will make life more affordable for everyday Americans and will unleash a new era of safety, prosperity, and success for our workers, our families and our businesses.

It is proven and no secret that President Trump has a record of economic success.

Recently, during the Bloomberg Interview at the Chicago Economic Club President Trump was in his element and spoke passionately about restoring economic growth, prosperity and opportunity for ALL Americans. He outlined his plan that will return American citizens and businesses to the success achieved in the first Trump administration.

Under the Trump Administration we had 4 years of low inflation He outlined his plan to Stop American Jobs from being shipped overseas

President Trump described his simple position on illegal immigration “ I want a lot of people to come into our country, but I want them to come in legally”

Americans know their lives were better off under President Trump When re-elected on November 5th, President Trump WILL turn the page on current economics and make America more affordable, prosperous and great again:

By ending taxes on tips and social security benefits for seniors; He will make America Energy Dominant and lower energy costs by 50% in 1st year; He will make America the BEST place to do business creating jobs in OUR Country! If they don’t make it in America, they will pay a tariff!

As I recalled, I am a product of the Delta coming from a distressed county in Southeastern Illinois ( Hardin County was once known as the Fluorspar Capital of the World). I fully appreciated the reopening of the Steel plant in nearby Granite City, Il and was present for that grand opening that President Trump attended. Fluorspar is used as a flux in steel making. The hope that it gave to us in rural Hardin County, and parts of Western Kentucky to re-ignite the Fluorspar mining industry (as those mines had long been closed due it becoming more expensive to mine and mill in our own country than to ship from China since the 80’s and 90’s).

President Trump’s 9 point plan focuses on Energy (cutting energy prices in half or more within 12 months of taking office; lowering tax cuts; green new deal; crypto; regulation ( he pledged to cut 2 old regulations for every new regulation and actually did better than that); Prioritizing efficiency ( Government Efficiency commission); Domestic production; Affordable housing; and National endeavors.

Simply put: President Trump will lower taxes, energy costs and slash regulation. President Trump’s plan will defeat inflation, bring down prices for working families return the U. S. to a manufacturing superpower and reignite economic growth. President Trump has done it before- and together as we are encouraged to support all those who are in leadership, I thank him for his support of Israel and his excellent choice for Vice President JD Vance.

No one Works Harder with one Goal in Mind- To Make America Great Again-

Thanks again, for the opportunity as we all work together for the Delta Region and all it has to offer!

Rhonda Belford RNC Committeewoman IL. Trump Delegate 2020/ Alt Trump Delegate 2024 Chairman Hardin County Illinois Republican Central Committee RN Ohio River Scenic Byway President Speaking on behalf of President Trump/ JD Vance

STATEMENT OF WILSON GOLDEN FOR KAMALA HARRIS

Delta Caucus Friends:

As a supplement to my presentation to the recent conference of the Mississippi Delta Caucus, I submit the recent statement by Vice President Kamala Harris about her optimism and patriotic view of what America stands for:

United States of America is the greatest idea humanity ever devised: a nation big enough to encompass all our dreams, strong enough to withstand any fracture or fissure between us, and fearless enough to imagine a future of possibilities.

And these excerpts from the recent editorial endorsement by the New York Times:

“The Only Patriotic Choice for President”

Beyond the economy, Ms. Harris promises to continue working to expand access to health care and reduce its cost. She has a long record of fighting to protect women’s health and reproductive freedom. Mr. Trump spent years trying to dismantle the Affordable Care Act and boasts of picking Supreme Court justices who ended the constitutional right to an abortion.

Globally, Ms. Harris would work to maintain and strengthen the alliances with like-minded nations that have long advanced American interests abroad and maintained the nation’s security. Mr. Trump–who has long praised autocrats like Vladimir Putin, Viktor Orban, and Kim Jong-un–has threatened to blow these democratic alliances apart.

Ms. Harris recognizes the need for global solutions to the global problem of climate change and would continue President Biden’s major investments in the industries and technologies necessary to achieve that goal. Mr. Trump rejects the accepted science, and his contempt for low-carbon energy solutions is matched only by his trollish fealty to fossil fuels.

As for immigration, a huge and largely unsolved issue, the former president continues to demonize and dehumanize immigrants, while Ms. Harris at least offers hope for a compromise, long denied by Congress, to secure the borders and return the nation to a sane immigration system.

Schedule and Link for Oct. 17-18, 2024 Delta Grassroots Caucus Zoom Meeting

Thu, 17 Oct 2024 11:55:00 GMT

Delta Caucus Zoom meeting Oct. 17, 2024—5 p.m. To about 6:20 p.m.

5 p.m.—5:09 p.m.—Brad Cole, Municipal League of Illinois

5:09—6:20 p.m.—Health, hunger and nutrition

Lee Powell, Delta Caucus director

Joel Berg, Hunger Free America—5:09 to 5:20

Heather Collier, Southeast Missouri Food Bank—5:20 to 5:30

Pat Van Burkleo, Feeding Louisiana–5:30–5:40

Sylvia Blain, Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance—5:40–5:50

Mayor Tomeka Butler, Eudora, Arkansas—5:50—6 p.m.

6 p.m.—Discussion

Oct. 18, 2024—9 a.m. To 11:30 a.m.

9 a.m. to 9:50 a.m.–“Big picture” panel on community and economic development in the Delta from several important regional leaders

Christopher Crane, Arkansas Economic Development Commission–9–9:10

Alan Gumbel, Black Business Association of Memphis, Tennessee–9:10–9:20

Elizabeth Rooks, Rooks Mediation Services–9:20–9:30

Mike Marshall, former Alternate Federal Co-Chair of the Delta Regional Authority, banker from Sikeston, Missouri–9:30–9:40

Diversity—9:40–10:05

9:40–9:50 a.m.–Mireya Reith, Arkansas United

9:50–10 a.m.–Loston Rowe, National Black Growers Council

Discussion

Education, Tourism and Regional Development–10;05 –10:35 a.m.

10:05–10:15 a.m.Cody Behles, University of Memphis–

10:15–10:25-Jen Mandel, University of Memphis

10:25–10:35–Shane Broadway, Arkansas State University (speaking on Johnny Cash statue in US Capitol)

Discussion

10:45 –11:05 a.m.—Speakers Supporting the Presidential Candidates

10:45-55 a.m.–Rhonda Belford, newly elected Republican National Committee National Committeewoman from Illinois; Trump delegate to the 2020 Republican National Convention, Alt. Trump Delegate to the 2024 Republican National Convention; Chairman, Hardin County Illinois Republican Central Committee; Registered Nurse; Speaking in support of Donald Trump for President

10:55–11:05 a.m. –Wilson Golden (Mississippi native now residing in Georgia; former Clinton administration Presidential appointee, one of the managers for Delta Regional Initiative with Lee Powell and the late Al Eisenberg); Delegate to the 2024 Democratic National Convention (his 12th DNC); Attorney; Speaking in support of Kamala Harris for President

11:05 a.m. To 11:20 a.m.—Questions for speakers on the Presidential candidates

LINK

The link information to join the meeting is below. You can check the website at mdgc.us for the basic information about Delta Caucus activities.

Here’s the link to join the upcoming Delta Caucus Zoom meeting, which is Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024 from 5 p.m. To 6:20 p.m. And the Friday session is Oct. 18, 2024 from 9 a.m. To about noon.

Delta Caucus Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87392618940?

pwd=m5cOon79a8nTg6La1fAI7vKS4CYg80.1

Meeting ID: 873 9261 8940

Passcode: 522533

NOTE: You will need to type in the codes to enter the conference because this is NOT an automatic link.

REGISTRATION FEES

The fastest and easiest way to pay the $50 registration fees is to go on the website at mdgc.us and go to the PayPal link that says “Donate.”

If you prefer to pay by check, please make out the check to “Delta Caucus” and mail to:

Delta Caucus 5030 Purslane Place Waldorf, MD 20601

Thanks—Lee Powell, Delta Caucus (202) 360-6347