Future Retirement Success
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Investing
  • Stocks
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Investing
  • Stocks

Future Retirement Success

Investing

Trump’s Trade Wars Harm Farmers and Taxpayers

by March 26, 2025
March 26, 2025
Trump’s Trade Wars Harm Farmers and Taxpayers

Tad DeHaven

American farmers are again facing significant losses from President Donald Trump’s quaint obsession with tariffs. Once again, American taxpayers may be forced to pay for the damage. 

In a social media post earlier this month, President Trump told “the Great Farmers of the United States” to “Have fun!” when the administration imposes more tariffs on April 2. The president of the American Soybean Association responded, “Farmers are frustrated. Tariffs are not something to take lightly and ‘have fun’ with.”

Indeed, soybean farmers were one of the biggest victims of Trump’s costly trade policies in his first term. Following retaliatory Chinese tariffs on American soybeans, exports to the soybean farmers’ largest foreign market dropped by 77 percent, according to the US Department of Agriculture. Of the $27 billion in total reduced US agriculture exports from mid-2018 to the end of 2019, soybeans represented 71 percent of the lost value.

While US soybean exports to China rebounded with a 2020 agreement between the two countries, American farmers’ share of the Chinese market has not recovered to pre-trade war levels. One reason is that Chinese importers can turn to Brazil and other countries.

With Trump back in the White House and his trade actions even more erratic and belligerent, foreign importers of US goods are seeking more dependable alternatives. Soybeans are just an example. Chinese importers are looking to South America as an alternative for chicken and pork and may turn to Australia for sorghum, barley, and wheat. It’s also not just Chinese importers. Other countries on Trump’s harassment list, including Canada and Mexico, are targeting US agricultural products for retaliatory tariffs and eyeing diversifying their sources of imports. 

At the same time, American farmers staring down reduced access to foreign markets are also facing higher production costs due to the US tariffs on imported agricultural inputs. Steel and aluminum tariffs mean higher prices for farm equipment. Canada is by far the largest supplier of potash to the US, which means higher fertilizer prices.

Farmers getting squeezed on both ends of a renewed and potentially uglier trade war likely means taxpayers will get squeezed to help cover the consequences. The first Trump administration took $23 billion from taxpayers and gave it to farmers to compensate for their losses. In her January Senate confirmation hearing, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins referenced the bailout, noting, “We are prepared to execute something similar … we can’t reinvent the wheel.”

While the administration is happy to provide farmers with another bailout following another self-inflicted gunshot to the economy, it’s already started handing out taxpayer money. Last week, Rollins used National Agriculture Day to announce the administration is issuing $10 billion in direct payments to farmers authorized by Congress in December. 

This is all occurring while the Trump administration is supposedly trying to downsize the federal government. However, eliminating “waste, fraud, and abuse” in government programs while simultaneously offering multi-billion dollar bailouts—all in the pursuit of economic autarky—will accomplish no such thing.

Looking for a good example of government waste, fraud, and abuse?

The time the Trump administration is spending upending global trade is a waste, the rationale for it is a fraud, and forcing taxpayers to cover the damage is downright abuse.

0
FacebookTwitterGoogle +Pinterest
previous post
Fevertree sales fizz in US with 9% boost, offsetting UK slowdown
next post
Is the Correction Over? Or Are We Still Looking at a Bear Market?

You may also like

What “Threads” Tells Us about Social Media Competition

July 7, 2023

The Pros and Cons of Decriminalization

September 29, 2023

The Pros and Cons of a Universal Basic...

October 18, 2024

Grace-Marie Turner, RIP

June 3, 2025

Poll: 63% of Americans Want to Increase Trade...

August 7, 2024

Overriding the Governor’s Veto, Vermont Lawmakers Expand Access...

June 18, 2024

North Carolina’s $1.2 Billion Bet on EV Startup...

April 23, 2024

A New Methadone Playbook: How DOGE and Deregulation...

April 2, 2025

Cato’s Erec Smith: ‘I’ve Been Accused of White...

October 2, 2023

Designing a BRAC‐​Like Fiscal Commission To Stabilize the Debt

May 8, 2023

    Get free access to all of the retirement secrets and income strategies from our experts! or Join The Exclusive Subscription Today And Get the Premium Articles Acess for Free

    By opting in you agree to receive emails from us and our affiliates. Your information is secure and your privacy is protected.

    Recent Posts

    • UK payrolls see biggest drop since covid as wage growth slows and job market weakens

      June 10, 2025
    • Why AI and green tech are vital to SME growth in 2025

      June 10, 2025
    • Yes, it’s great to get PR coverage – until it’s locked behind a bloody paywall

      June 10, 2025
    • We have to act now to keep AI from becoming a far-left Trojan Horse

      June 10, 2025
    • SME lending delays slashed by 80% thanks to fintech-driven back-office reform

      June 10, 2025
    • UK defence innovation strategy opens new doors for SMEs in AI and autonomous tech

      June 10, 2025

    Categories

    • Business (8,173)
    • Investing (2,021)
    • Politics (15,580)
    • Stocks (3,138)
    • About us
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms & Conditions

    Disclaimer: futureretirementsuccess.com, its managers, its employees, and assigns (collectively “The Company”) do not make any guarantee or warranty about what is advertised above. Information provided by this website is for research purposes only and should not be considered as personalized financial advice. The Company is not affiliated with, nor does it receive compensation from, any specific security. The Company is not registered or licensed by any governing body in any jurisdiction to give investing advice or provide investment recommendation. Any investments recommended here should be taken into consideration only after consulting with your investment advisor and after reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the company.

    Copyright © 2025 futureretirementsuccess.com | All Rights Reserved