CHAPMAN, Neb. — Rural America is Trump country with wide support for the former president but some in the heartland question the former president’s policies and their impact on agriculture.
As farm families bring in this year’s crop, they have experienced a downturn in commodity prices. A new analysis jointly by the National Corn Growers Association and Soybean Association finds another trade war could cost billions, rippling through rural communities.
“My family farm weathered the 2018 retaliatory tariffs where soybeans were put in the center of the target. We watched as the value of soybean prices tanked in the field as we grew it and Brazil and Argentina were able to seize,” Jaime Beyer said.
Beyer is on the American Soybean Association board and farms in Minnesota. She joined other Midwest ag leaders who fear Trump’s proposed tariffs could hit agriculture hard.
“Losses like these have generational impacts to our ag economy. When the farm economy hurts, rural America suffers,” Beyer said.
Another report by North Dakota State University finds a trade war with China could have an impact in the billions.
During a forum at the Nebraska State Fair this year, former Trump administration officials and GOP members of Congress expressed concern a Harris administration could mean more red tape and new burdens on farmers.
“We need to have Republican leadership to get these things on track,” Sen. Pete Ricketts said.
A GOP spokeswoman issued a statement responding to concerns from some farm groups.
“Farmers and all rural Americans have been left behind by Kamala Harris’ weak, failed, and dangerously liberal policies that have crippled our economy, imposed red tape on our farmers, and created uncertainty through measures like their burdensome WOTUS rule,” RNC Spokesperson Anna Kelly said.
Clearly many farmers and ranchers, maybe most, support President Trump but others sound alarm that new tariffs would hit at a bad time.
“Farmers get a double whammy, prices of inputs went up, and the value of the product we’re selling went down,” said Denny Wolff, former ag secretary in Pennsylvania.
Nebraska farmers have also raised concerns that the Biden administration has been silent on trade, not mounting much defense when Mexico tried to shut out biotech corn as conservatives say Trump’s tariffs may have been challenging but they see trouble under a Harris administration.
Both campaigns seek votes from rural America and it remains to be seen how these issues will impact farmers and ranchers when they go to the polls.