President-elect Barack Obama's pick to head the U.S. Agriculture Department is expected to push Obama's pledge to trim wasteful farm subsidies, an elusive goal that has confounded President George W. Bush and scores of lawmakers.
Both Obama and former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack, his choice to oversee the country's food and farm programs, face long odds in getting such an agenda past powerful farm-state lawmakers in Congress, despite many calls from within Washington, around the country and abroad where the subsidies have helped tie up trade negotiations.
Vilsack's first task will be helping the enormous department figure out how to put the new $290 billion farm …
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