Trump aid for agricultural equipment sought Republicans

Republican lawmakers are calling on President Donald Trump for more farm aid and aid to farm equipment manufacturers amid a tariff onslaught, even though he has already made a $12 billion bailout package for farmers hurt by President Donald Trump’s trade policies.

Farmers said Trump’s tariff policies have hit rock bottom as they rely on exports to international trade rivals, including China, to stay afloat.

The blow comes on top of several years of low commodity prices and the high costs of key inputs such as fertilizer, which are already forcing farmers to tighten their belts.

Declining demand for new equipment from cash-strapped farmers led to layoffs at some of the largest manufacturers among them earlier this year. Deere.

Cory Reed, Deere’s agriculture and turf division president, said: Finance Times “The U.S. market has been the most under pressure… looking at what’s going on with trade flows, tariffs and the cost structure increasing internally, we’ve seen the market cycle going downwards,” this week.

“We are concerned that persistently high tariffs, especially on critical parts and components that are not available domestically, will inadvertently harm our farmers and ranchers and increase costs for all Americans,” said Kip Eideberg, director of government and industry relations for the Equipment Manufacturers Association.

This dynamic alarmed lawmakers; Some have asked Trump to step in as he tries to save farmers, a loyal voting bloc, from the financial consequences of his trade policies.

A spokesman for Trump ally Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said the senator appealed to the administration.

“Last week, Senator Grassley brought constituent concerns to the White House, the U.S. Trade Representative, and the Departments of Commerce and Agriculture, shared that equipment manufacturers could benefit from targeted relief from tariffs, and called on the administration to eliminate tariffs on certain farm machinery parts,” the spokesperson said in a statement to CNBC. he said.

Other Republican senators also voiced their opinions.

Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.) said in an interview that the equipment issue was highlighted at a White House roundtable Monday where he laid out his plan to help farmers hurt by Trump’s trade policies. He said the president accepted the request to help farmers with equipment.

“We talked to the president privately about this, and he said he specifically wanted to look at how we could help make farm equipment more affordable,” Hoeven said.

Trump has suggested “reducing some of the regulatory burdens on farm equipment manufacturers” to keep costs down, Hoeven said.

At the roundtable, Trump publicly suggested he would reduce environmental regulations on farm equipment manufacturers only if those companies lower their prices.

Trump said these regulations “do nothing but make the equipment a lot more expensive and a lot more complicated to operate, and it’s not as good as it was in the old days.”

“We’re going to do this and say ‘you’re going to lower the prices.'”

But Republican lawmakers argue the solution lies in getting farmers more income so they can buy new equipment.

This could be a difficult task, given the already tight margins for operating a farm and the impact of Trump’s tariffs.

Rep. Frank Lucas, R-Okla., former House Agriculture Committee Chairman and a farmer himself, said the weakening market for producers is indicative of a weak agricultural economy.

“When equipment salesmen start screaming, when fertilizer and seed dealers start screaming, when banks start screaming, there’s a problem,” Lucas said.

“I think the $12 billion aid package that the administration is talking about is a step in that direction, and I must admit that we need to complete some of these trade negotiations and get our products back to world markets.”

The Trump administration has engaged in trade talks with various countries, resulting in lower tariffs in some cases.

Trump’s $12 billion business rescue package Farmer Bridge Payment ProgramIt provides $11 billion to row crop farmers who grow large quantities of crops such as corn and soybeans. Farmers are already receiving nearly $30 billion in additional aid from the federal government this year

Additional federal funds will flow next October as provisions in the Republican compromise package known as the One Big Good Bill Act kick in.

However American Farm Bureau Mayor Zippy Duvall warned farmers would need more than that to get by.

“Bridge support is a down payment, and members of Congress have already expressed their desire to fill the gaps,” Duvall said. he wrote. band website.

Some members of Congress accepted this proposal and signaled that additional federal funding would flow to agriculture in the future.

Senate Agriculture Chairman John Boozman, R-Ark., said for the third year in a row farmers are “losing money if they’re growing something in the ground.”

“We stand ready to do more in Congress if necessary,” he said.