Angry American farmers and politicians in farm states are livid at president Donald Trump's $12 billion agriculture bailout, saying this move signals the worst is yet to come and that their ruin is a given.
The Trump administration announced the bailout Tuesday but omitted to reveal the really important details such as when, how, or how much farmers will receive for their pain. Trump claims the bailout will help farmers survive the trade war against China and the European Union (EU) that Trump began in March and worsened on July 6.
The worst is expected in September when Trump imposes taxes on all of China's exports to the U.S. China said it will instantly respond to the new taxes. Agricultural experts said the retaliatory tariffs by China and the EU disproportionately target American farmers.
"Our concern is that this $12 billion bailout is really this indication that there's no end in sight for these trade wars, and that they're trying to placate farmers in the meantime," said Alicia Harvie, advocacy director of Farm Aid, a non-profit whose mission is to build a vibrant, family farm-centered system of agriculture in America.
"We know for sure it won't make farmers whole," said Harvie, referring to a government estimate that American farmers have now suffered $13 billion in losses because of Trump's trade war. That number will double before the year ends.
Farmers and farm state politicians such as Ohio Governor John Kasich are asking Trump to rescind his tariffs. Trump replied to them in a painful tweet: "Every time I see a weak politician asking to stop Trade talks or the use of Tariffs to counter unfair Tariffs, I wonder, what can they be thinking? Are we just going to continue and let our farmers and country get ripped off? Lost $817 Billion on Trade last year. No weakness!"
Kasich attacked Trump's $12 billion bailouts, and said it was a form of "vote-buying."
"Farmers don't want aid -- they want to trade," said Kasich. "Now it has been compounded by actually furthering the debt of this country, spending as much as $12 billion providing aid to make up for the damage that has been done by the continuing tariffs. This is really a terrible, terrible policy."
Kasich suggested Trump was engaging in "vote-buying" with farmers from agricultural states that have key races during midterm elections this November.
"This is all about making farmers feel better," said Kasich. "It's not even what farmers want. Farmers want access to the world. They don't want somebody to give them some welfare check."
Kasich said many of his fellow Republicans are "beginning to get fed up" with Trump.
Ohio is being hit hard by Trump's trade war. It's one of America's top soybean producers and soybeans are the largest U.S. agriculture export to China and are grown in rural states that mainly voted for Trump.
China last week increased duties on imported US soybeans, cotton, and other products by 25 percent in response to tariffs on Chinese goods imposed by Trump on July 6. The U.S. Department of Agriculture cut its forecast for China's soybean imports from 103 million to 95 million metric tonnes in the coming marketing year. It also reduced its outlook for soybean exports by nearly 11 percent, or from 62.3 million to 55.5 million tonnes.
