NCC President George Watts (R) with Jamie Whitten, a Democratic U.S. Representative from Mississippi who served in the House for 53 years (1941–1995). He was the powerful chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations from 1979 through 1992. He previously led its Agriculture Subcommittee for decades, earning the nickname “the permanent secretary of agriculture.” Today, USDA’s Whitten Building is named after him. Photo from 1986.
