Identified by Time Magazine as “one of the sharpest minds in the House,” Tom Cole is currently serving in his tenth term in the U.S. House of Representatives. At the outset of his service in Congress, Cole was named one of the "Five Freshmen to Watch" by Roll Call. In 2016, he was recognized by Newsmax as the “hardest working member in Congress.” He was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame in 2017.
Cole is recognized as a tireless advocate for taxpayers and small businesses, supporter of a strong national defense and leader in promoting biomedical research. He is considered the foremost expert in the House on issues related to Native Americans and tribal governments.
Production agriculture is the heart of America. In fact, the Fourth District of Oklahoma is the proud home to more than 13,000 farms and ranches. We cannot take for granted the hard work and innovation of the agriculture sector or the value they add to the economy.
Sadly, production agriculture has become an afterthought in a country whose citizens spend a smaller percentage of their income on food than anywhere else in the world. While our population continues to shift to urban centers, many Americans are unaware of the hard work and innovation our farmers and ranchers bring to production agriculture.
There are no better stewards of the land than those whose livelihood depends on that land. I will continue to work with my colleagues to roll back burdensome rules and regulations that have often posed needlessly high compliance costs for farmers and ranchers, which is crippling for agriculture production in rural America.
I work closely with Congressman Frank Lucas (OK-03), a former Chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture, and other members in the Oklahoma delegation to ensure that our farmers and ranchers are not left behind and that safety nets, such as crop insurance, remain in place to protect against the volatile effects of drought, floods, tornadoes and other disasters.