JACKSON Miss. -- President Bush is nominating Sen. Thad Cochran's longtime chief of staff, Mark Keenum, to a high-level position in the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cochran said.
Keenum, who's from Corinth and now lives with his family in Alexandria, Va., is in line to become undersecretary of agriculture for farm and foreign agriculture services. He has been on Cochran's staff for the past 17 years, serving as chief of staff for the past 10.
"I have confidence in his professional ability and in him personally," Cochran, R-Miss., said in a news release. "Mark is an excellent choice for this position, and I look forward to voting on his nomination soon."
Cochran said that Keenum was his adviser on agricultural issues and worked closely on the 1990, 1996, and the 2002 Farm Bills.
Keenum served as assistant professor and economist of the Department of Agricultural Economics at Mississippi State University. He has also worked as a research associate with the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station.
Keenum was often mentioned as a possible contender for the presidency of Mississippi State before Robert "Doc" Foglesong was chosen for the job earlier this year. He received his bachelor's degree, master's degree and doctorate from Mississippi State.
His wife, Rhonda, serves as deputy assistant to President Bush and director of the White House Office of Public Liaison.Associated Press
