Stopping Trump’s Anti-Science USDA Nominee

Friends of the Earth coordinated a campaign involving over 70,000 signatures and member outreach to oppose the nomination of Sam Clovis as USDA Chief Scientist, citing his lack of scientific background and climate denial. The effort, combined with political pressure from Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and news of Clovis's involvement in the Russia investigation, led to Clovis withdrawing his nomination.

• Friends of the Earth opposed Sam Clovis's nomination for USDA Chief Scientist because he is a "blatant climate denier" with "no background in science or agriculture", making him "considerably unfit for the office" which controls research spending.
• The campaign to stop the nomination included collecting more than 70,000 signatures and urging members to contact Senators and Congress, while collaborating with other progressive organizations.
• The nomination was ultimately withdrawn following pressure from the Senate committee, public denouncement by Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, and reports that Clovis had been interviewed by Robert Mueller’s team regarding ties to Russia.

APA

Fox, A. (2017). Stopping Trump’s Anti-Science USDA Nominee. Friends of the Earth. https://foe.org/victory-stories/impact-story-1/

Chicago

Fox, Audrey. Stopping Trump’s Anti-Science USDA Nominee. Friends of the Earth, 2017. https://foe.org/victory-stories/impact-story-1/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Fox |first1=Audrey |title=Stopping Trump’s Anti-Science USDA Nominee |publisher=Friends of the Earth |date=27 November 2017 |url=https://foe.org/victory-stories/impact-story-1/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{fox2017stopping, author = {Fox, Audrey}, title = {{Stopping Trump’s Anti-Science USDA Nominee}}, institution = {Friends of the Earth}, year = {2017}, month = nov, url = {https://foe.org/victory-stories/impact-story-1/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }