The President’s plan to aid farmers in the midst of the trade war is not sitting well with several groups, including a number of Republicans in Congress.
Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin says, “This is becoming more and more like a Soviet-style economy here with commissars in the administration figuring out where to sprinkle around benefits.”
According to the Hagstrom Report, Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor says the administration missed an opportunity to provide long-term relief to farmers by increasing domestic demand for ethanol through RVP relief. “Allowing year-round sales of higher blends like E15 is one way to address sales lost because of tariffs and give a little more certainty for farmers,” says Skor.
The Heritage Foundation’s Trade Economist Tori Whiting says the plan is a misguided attempt to mitigate the harm caused by tariffs at taxpayer expense. “Bad policy doesn’t justify more bad policy,” Whiting says. “The administration’s plan to throw more money at a problem it created will not increase the freedom to trade in America.”
North Dakota Senator Heidi Heitkamp says the lost markets overseas will be very difficult to bring back because they took years to create.
From the National Association of Farm Broadcasting News Service.