Ron DeSantis offers to move part of US ag department to Iowa as part of relocation policy

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said he would offer to at least partially relocate the U.S. Department of Agriculture to Iowa if he is elected president — part of a federal agency relocation policy he shared Saturday while celebrating the completion of his visit to all 99 Iowa counties.

DeSantis, his campaign and supporters celebrated in Newton his touted completion of a "Full Grassley" tour to all of Iowa's counties. The "Full Grassley" was coined by longtime U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, who travels to every Iowa county each year.

But DeSantis offered to bring more to Iowa in the future than himself and his family.

“We have to take power out of Washington, D.C., and send it to other parts of the country,” DeSantis said. As president, “I’m going to order all of our cabinet secretaries to reduce their agency’s footprint in Washington, D.C., by at least 50%.”

For Iowa, that would mean “you guys will have first dibs on the Department of Agriculture," he said.

“A number of people said they don’t like USDA Washington bureaucrats interfering with how people are farming, and they would much rather have this agency be run with people from their own communities."

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, who campaigned for DeSantis with him Saturday in Newton, later said through a spokesperson, "It's a great idea. There's no better place to put USDA, because there's no one who knows farming better than Iowans."

Two U.S. Department of Agriculture research agencies were moved in September 2019 from the nation’s capital to Kansas City under the administration of then-President Donald Trump.

According to the Associated Press, the Economic Research Service and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture's moves were pitched as putting them closer to farmers, though much of their work involves advising members of Congress in Washington.

However, many workers left the agencies who couldn't or didn't want to move across the country, leaving the agencies understaffed and reducing the scope and frequency in the release of data farmers looked to.

DeSantis says completing the "Full Grassley" is about more than Iowa

The DeSantis campaign shared a list of 130 stops across 98 of Iowa's counties with the Des Moines Register. Newton in Jasper County brought the total Saturday to 99.

DeSantis' accounting included high profile events such as the Family Leadership Summit in Polk County and U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks' annual tailgate in Johnson County.

More: Donald Trump jump-starts turnout efforts for Iowa Caucuses, blasts Kim Reynolds in Ankeny

It also included private events, such as fundraisers for state legislators, in addition to stops at the world's largest popcorn ball in Sac County and Waspy's Truck Stop in Audubon County.

DeSantis said in Newton that visiting the state's 99 counties is not just about the Iowa Caucuses, but about how he would lead the entire country.

He said doing the "Full Grassley" tour shows he considers himself a “servant, not a ruler" — someone who comes from among the people he serves, earns support for his candidacy and serves no agenda but of the people.

“Iowa will begin the revival of the United States of America," DeSantis said.

Republican presidential candidate Ryan Binkley's campaign claimed that Binkley completed a "Full Grassley" tour on Nov. 10.

DeSantis and Nikki Haley were tied for second place far behind former President Donald Trump in the most recent Des Moines Register/NBC News/Mediacom Iowa Poll, though polling nationally has shown Haley's popularity has been increasing while DeSantis' has been slipping.

Still, DeSantis has been accumulating a rising number of endorsements from Iowa political leaders. Several of them joined him and his wife, Casey DeSantis, in Newton Saturday, including Reynolds, Family Leader president and CEO Bob Vander Plaats, Iowa House Majority Leader Rep. Matt Winschitl and other state lawmakers.

Vander Plaats said, "Voting for Ron DeSantis is not against Donald Trump. It is about the future of our country.”

Reynolds said DeSantis "showed up for us, now we’ve got to show up for him.”

More: When are the 2024 Iowa Caucuses? Mark your calendar

Des Moines Register reporter Brianne Pfannenstiel and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

Phillip Sitter focuses for the Des Moines Register on reporting on suburban growth and development in the western metro areas. Phillip also is helping cover Republican presidential campaigns, including that of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, ahead of the 2024 Iowa Caucus. Phillip can be reached via email at psitter@gannett.com. He is on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @pslifeisabeauty.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Ron DeSantis relocation policy would move part of ag department to Iowa