Tucker Stewart, a former USDA congressional liaison, is now a legal adviser to Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, according to five people familiar with the move.
The USDA staffer whose smutty novella sparked controversy in September — and inside President Donald Trump’s White House, where top aides considered his termination — remains at the department.
In fact, he’s been promoted — despite the swift blowback his foray into penmanship sparked just months ago.
After the dust settled, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins quietly made Tucker Stewart a trusted legal adviser, moving him out of his position as deputy assistant secretary of agriculture in the department’s congressional affairs unit, according to five people. Those people, who include an agriculture lobbyist, two Capitol Hill aides and others with knowledge of the matter, were all granted anonymity to speak candidly about sensitive personnel matters.
A spokesperson for the USDA verified that Stewart has left the agency’s congressional affairs unit and “is now working on USDA’s lawfare portfolio.” The White House did not respond to a request for comment. Stewart did not respond to a request for comment sent via LinkedIn.
His reassignment has also left a void in USDA’s office of congressional relations during a chaotic time for farmers and participants in USDA’s nutrition programs, all of which have been affected by the shutdown. (Former Rep. Yvette Herrell (R-N.M.) is still awaiting Senate confirmation for the post of assistant secretary for congressional affairs.)
Rollins, one of the people said, told colleagues she “felt bad” for the humiliation Stewart endured when POLITICO broke the story of his 28-page novel, written when he was a congressional aide, followed by a monologue by “Late Show” host Stephen Colbert.
The new position, a second person said, places the young Kansan in Rollins’ inner circle and in a position to advise the secretary on some of the most sensitive initiatives at the department.
Stewart, who according to two of the people is known among colleagues for wearing his black cowboy hat — also a calling card for his main character — penned the erotic short story about a cowboy living in Washington when he was working for Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) and shared it with a circle of friends for feedback. Stewart was an agriculture adviser and later general counsel for Marshall.
Earlier this year the manuscript, which included vivid descriptions of oral sex and other sexually explicit content, again started circulating around Capitol Hill, and it quickly found its way to other federal departments and even outside agriculture industry and trade groups.
“The DC ag community lost it when this started going around,” said a fourth person.