On The Nomination of Andrew Fish to be Assistant Secretary of Agriculture for Congressional Relations
 

Thank you for holding this hearing so that we can consider the nomination of Andy Fish to be Assistant Secretary of Agriculture.

It is days like today that make me realize I that I’ve been here in the Senate for a while.

I first met Andy ten years ago, while I was still Chairman of the Agriculture Committee.  Andy had just graduated from Yale, and he joined my staff as an intern.
 
Andy is friendly, extremely articulate, intelligent, hard-working and in general, he has been a huge asset to the Agriculture Committee.
 
And it doesn’t hurt that Andy is a 7th generation Vermonter from Dummerston, Vermont.

In the three years that he worked for me on the Committee, Andy was invaluable for his hard work, his leadership on nutrition issues, and his bipartisanship as he forged alliances across the aisle.  He played a large role in making the WIC Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program permanent through  a bill which passed this committee and the Senate by unanimous consent.

I also feel it necessary to mention that during those first few years on the Agriculture Committee, Andy met a woman by the name of Alicia Bambara, a fellow Vermonter who was also working on my Agriculture Committee staff.  I suspect that some of their meetings weren’t merely on nutrition or forestry issues, as they enjoyed their 5th wedding anniversary this past May.
 
After graduating law school and working at Dow, Lohnes and Albertson law firm for a few years, Andy returned to the Committee as Deputy Chief Counsel to Ranking Member Harkin.  Andy’s expertise on the environmental management of livestock operations has made him a resource for Democrats and Republicans alike.

In closing, I would like to say that I cannot think of anyone who would do a better job at Congressional Relations.  I am extremely proud of Andy Fish, and I know that this pride is shared by his family,  friends and colleagues.  I wholeheartedly support Andy’s nomination to this post.