One Midwest Democratic House candidate said he isn’t impressed with President Trump’s $12 billion farm aid plan.
J.D. Scholten (D-Iowa) told Hill.TV that farmers in his district are still reeling from the impact of Trump’s trade tariffs.
“When it came out this week about the $12 billion – it’s like if you get punched in the face and then you get an ice pack,” Scholten told co-host Krystal Ball on “Rising.”
Scholten said farmers were struggling even before Trump took a hardline stance on trade policies, pointing to what he sees as a larger, underlying systemic problem that plagues the agriculture industry.
“Farmers have had a lot of anxiety before it even came to the tariffs…we need to get into more markets,” Scholten said.
“Right now, I see a lot of farmers, they don’t really know what to think – they’re worried about this year’s harvest,” Scholten told Hill.TV. “The pork producers and dairy folks, they’re getting hit right now.”
Scholten is running against Iowa’s fourth district incumbent, Rep. Steve King (R), who represents the largest farm district in the state.
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue unveiled the aid plan on Tuesday, calling it a short-term fix intended to provide “time to work on long-term trade deals.”
The newly proposed package was met with criticism from midwestern lawmakers from both sides of the aisle.
Republican Sen. Ben Sasse (Neb.) said in a statement that America’s farmers don’t want to be paid to lose — they want to win by feeding the world.”
On Wednesday, Trump pleaded with farmers to “be a little patient” and claimed that farmers would “be the biggest beneficiary” of his trade policies.
— Tess Bonn
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