Another Taxpayer Bailout Due to Unwise Tariffs

Anyone who has followed my political opinion career knows I love to gripe about bailouts, handouts, grants, and other taxpayer-funded giveaways. It’s robbing Peter to pay Paul, and it’s wrong. Thanks to Trump, we may have yet another bailout.

His administration is expected to announce a plan to bail out U.S. farmers stung by trade disputes, brought on by Trump’s own idiotic tariff circus. The initial outlay could total up to $15 billion. That’s $15 billion paid by everyday consumers for “spin-the-wheel” tariff implementations… just to farmers. Other industries will expect their bailout, too.

Let’s not forget, farmers generally voted for President Trump even though he announced, in advance, he was going to put tariffs on goods, especially from China. They should have expected the retaliation that occurred. China, the largest buyer of U.S. soybeans, has basically boycotted purchase of our soybeans. They are now buying from Brazil and Argentina, instead.

Farm income is expected to rise by 41% this year bringing it close to the ‘22 record. However, that’s mostly due to government payments, and strong livestock prices which we all see at the grocer. Farmers like to say they don’t want government in their lives, yet few refuse a taxpayer-funded check, whether it’s in the form crop insurance assistance, pricing supports, or this latest potential bailout. Need proof?

During Trump 1.0, they accepted over $23 billion in tariff-related, taxpayer funded bailouts. Farmers are already set to receive more than $40 billion in overall taxpayer aid this year based on economic packages passed by Congress last year. A bump to $55 billion would total over $330 per American worker this year alone. Rather than bailouts, perhaps Ag could market to the aforementioned Brazil and Argentina. Unfortunately, Trump has imposed various tariffs on them, too.

In addition, farmers are also being buried, price-wise, by their own crop-growing success. Technology has permitted far greater crop yields per acre, and the glut of such success usually means supply far outpaces demand, which isn’t good for sellers. The farm industry seeks further ethanol mandates to fuel their incomes. They insist on year-round sales of E-15 - but why? E-85 already exists and most car-buyers have turned a blind eye to flex-fuel vehicles. I don’t want to use E-15 as my car isn’t warranted for fuel rated over E-10.

Farmers also complain about the adverse price of fertilizer in their success, and truth be told, the price increases since Covid-19 have been atrocious. However, I also believe most farmers could cut back on fertilizer, herbicides, pesticides, and all the other “...cides” they put on fields. Food production is far and away the largest cause of water pollution.

Certainly, we need farmers to succeed. However, the point is this. Government needs to get out the Ag business, eliminate the tariff circus on life’s necessities such as food, and let the economy work the way it works best – unfiltered, unaltered supply and demand. That way, farmers can benefit, or suffer, from their own intelligent or ignorant decisions, not the government’s.

Source used: Farmforum.net via Reuters