Hurting Farmers Look to Biden’s USDA Pick to Fix Mounting Woes

President-elect Joe Biden, set to inherit the nation’s distressed farm economy, now faces choosing the right candidate for agriculture secretary to address the industry’s economic setbacks stemming from the coronavirus pandemic and trade disputes.

“That next secretary needs to be willing and able to affect some longer-term change, rather than just short-term Band-Aids, and try to fix the farm economy for years to come, rather than months to come,” said Mike Stranz, the National Farmers Union’s vice president of advocacy.

Democratic contenders for the role include former Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (N.D.), former Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, Reps. ...