The State of the Union is by no means a celebrity event. But when you’re a farmer from Wisconsin, invited by a congressman for a day of events and to attend the President’s speech, it’s easy to see how having the biggest names in politics under one roof can give off the persona of a celebrity event.

That was the case for Wisconsin Soybean Association President Doug Rebout, who attended the Feb. 24 speech to Congress as a guest of U.S. Representative Mark Pocan (WI-2)

“I’ve had a longstanding relationship through years of advocacy with the Congressman and his office,” Rebout said. “Along with that relationship, WSA has been very vocal on tariffs in the media. That’s why I was invited to attend the State of the Union.”

Rebout did not only attend, he spent the day on a media blitz, set up by Rep. Pocan’s staff, that included a plethora of media styles.

“I did a podcast with Rep. Pocan, and then we did a wide variety of interviews, from television, to radio, to newspapers, to bloggers and social media influencers.”

One of the more interesting interviews he did was with a TikTok influencer, which Rebout admitted, was a first.

“Being interviewed by the TikTok influencer wasn’t all that different from any other interview I have done,” Rebout said. “But the benefit of that interview is that we’re talking to younger people, who are far removed from the farm, about agriculture and the important role it plays in our country.”

While Rebout spent the day talking about the state of agriculture and how farmers play a key role in food security for the country, the downtime between interviews also led to benefits for Wisconsin soybean farmers.

“Typically, we head to D.C. and we have maybe 15-20 minutes with our representatives or their staff before the next meeting,” he said. “All you can do is hit the major talking points, answer a couple of questions and you’re done. This visit allowed me ample time with Rep. Pocan, but even more time with his staff. By the end of the day, they were revising some of their talking points, which doesn’t happen often.”

As to what was his biggest takeaway from the day, Rebout couldn’t quite put his finger on one thing. He likened the House of Representatives Chamber to the size of a high school gymnasium. Ultimately, it was something about the people.

“I didn’t pay as much attention to the speech as I did the people,” he said. “We heard all day what could be in the speech. I really paid attention to how people reacted during the speech.”

Well, their reactions, and maybe a little bit of that celebrity awe.

“I was in the front row of the balcony, to the President’s right,” he said. “And directly across from me was Melania and the President’s family, which was pretty surreal.”

The experience left Rebout with a thought about WSA. About where the association came from, and where it is going.

“We’re becoming one of the leading ag organizations in the state,” he said. “We have staff who are involved. We have great directors who are very involved. It’s not just one person stepping up. We have a team, and we’re being heard.”