The dirt on Sonny Perdue gave him the edge for Donald Trump’s Agriculture Secretary

Donald Trump bucks being politically correct.

That trend continued as he passed over favored minorities to lead the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

On the eve of the inauguration, the president-elect took more than a minute to praise Sonny Perdue, his pick for Agriculture secretary, during Thursday night’s donor dinner at Union Station.

“How great our cabinet has performed,” Trump told those gathered at the gala. “There’s never been a cabinet like this. I will say the other side is going crazy. They’re going crazy.”

Georgia’s first Republican governor since Reconstruction was the last nominee for the cabinet and closed the last opportunity to appoint a Latino.

Perdue’s selection means there will not be an Hispanic on the cabinet for the first time in nearly 30 years.

Trump said although he had other candidates, he kept coming back to the Houston County native who grew up on his father’s farm and studied veterinary medicine.

Perdue was one of several candidates interviewed, including former California Lt. Gov. Abel Maldonado and a trio of Texans — the state’s agriculture commissioner, Sid Miller; former Texas Agriculture Commissioner Susan Combs; and former Texas A&M President Elsa Murano.

Just a couple minutes into Trump’s pre-inaugural remarks, he introduced Perdue.

“Today, as you know, we appointed a secretary of agriculture. He happens to be a farmer. He happens to be... Oh, there his is. Look at that man. Sonny Perdue,” Trump said.

“He came into my office two months ago. Since then, I saw 10 people that everybody liked. Politically correct. And I kept thinking back to Sonny Perdue, a great, great farmer.”

Trump said he questioned the other candidates about their farming knowledge.

“Do you have any experience with farms or agriculture?” he asked one unnamed gentleman.

“No sir, I don’t.”

“Have you ever seen a farm?” the future president followed up.

Trump praised the applicant as a “great guy” but said “I can’t make him secretary of agriculture.”

It was the literal dirt on Perdue that set him apart.

“He loves the farms. Knows everything about farming. Knows everything about farming. He’s been successful in farming,” Trump said. “He knows the good stuff and the bad stuff.”

Perdue said waiting for the appointment was worth it, even if it meant skipping a few hunting trips.

The 70-year-old told The Telegraph he is looking forward to the serving the nation’s farmers.

This story was originally published January 20, 2017 at 8:04 AM with the headline "The dirt on Sonny Perdue gave him the edge for Donald Trump’s Agriculture Secretary."