The pony-tailed president-elect of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association took a little good-natured ribbing from former White House advisor Karl Rove this morning for his hairstyle, but he also poked a little fun at himself during his address to the thousands of cattle industry members.

“I am the first president of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association to be on Facebook,” said Bill, noting that he had to come up with some of his favorite quotes for his profile. They are “If you don’t think too good, don’t think too much” and “If it’s worth doing, it’s worth overdoing.”

Getting more serious, Bill stressed the importance of the industry working together. “We’re a diverse outfit, we cover every segment of the industry, and I don’t apologize to anybody about that,” he said. “Yeah, we’ve got packers who serve on the board of this outfit. And we’ve got retailers and we have importers and cow-calf guys and stocker guys and feedlot operators. Because that’s what it takes for all of us to be profitable is all of us to be in the same room working on the same issues.”

Bill used a painting by Montana artist David Hodges to illustrate teamwork in the beef cattle industry. That painting is pictured here. Among other things, Bill drew attention to the freight wagon going up the hill on the high road. “We get a lot of challenges, a lot of groups and individuals that can say a lot of nasty things about us,” he said. “We’re gonna stay on the high road.”

Listen to Bill’s remarks here: NCBA Bill Donald Remarks

2011 Cattle Industry Convention Photos

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