Political Promises and Federal Farm Aid: The Costly Competition
Source: The DairyNews
In a curious turn of events reminiscent of Wonderland, the political landscape finds candidates vying for rural votes with promises of substantial federal aid to farmers, writes farmanddairy.com
The most recent example was Donald Trump in Iowa, boasting about securing $28 billion from China. However, this claim, according to Politico, is debunked, revealing that the funds actually came from the U.S. government to compensate farmers affected by Trump's trade war with Beijing.
The political saga takes another twist when comparing the farm payments authorized by both Biden and Trump during their first three years in office. Surprisingly, they each greenlit nearly $57 billion in direct federal payments to farmers. This staggering sum prompts a question: Why is this financial competition for farmers' favor something to celebrate?
Even though the Biden administration's fourth-year agricultural spending is pending, it would need to be substantial to surpass Trump's fourth-year total of $52 billion, marking the highest one-year amount since USDA began recording farm payment data in 1933. The bulk of these expenditures stemmed from COVID-19 aid packages to stabilize the economy during the pandemic.
Despite Trump's inaccurate claim of delivering billions in aid to farmers, the real measure of success lies in net farm income. By this metric, the Biden administration appears to outperform the Trump White House, with net farm income on the rise since Biden took office. Politico notes that, on average, net farm income totaled $165 billion between 2021 and 2023, compared to $94 billion between 2017 and 2019. The Biden years even saw a record high of nearly $189 billion in farm income in 2022.
Despite this positive economic trend, political analysts predict grim reelection prospects for Biden among rural voters. Joe Glauber, USDA's chief economist during the Obama years, expresses concerns over Trump's tariff approach, especially with China, as it poses a risk of triggering another damaging trade war. The dilemma persists: Will the electoral landscape continue to be dominated by the slogan "Elect me because I'll send you more federal money than the other guy"?
The political saga takes another twist when comparing the farm payments authorized by both Biden and Trump during their first three years in office. Surprisingly, they each greenlit nearly $57 billion in direct federal payments to farmers. This staggering sum prompts a question: Why is this financial competition for farmers' favor something to celebrate?
Even though the Biden administration's fourth-year agricultural spending is pending, it would need to be substantial to surpass Trump's fourth-year total of $52 billion, marking the highest one-year amount since USDA began recording farm payment data in 1933. The bulk of these expenditures stemmed from COVID-19 aid packages to stabilize the economy during the pandemic.
Despite Trump's inaccurate claim of delivering billions in aid to farmers, the real measure of success lies in net farm income. By this metric, the Biden administration appears to outperform the Trump White House, with net farm income on the rise since Biden took office. Politico notes that, on average, net farm income totaled $165 billion between 2021 and 2023, compared to $94 billion between 2017 and 2019. The Biden years even saw a record high of nearly $189 billion in farm income in 2022.
Despite this positive economic trend, political analysts predict grim reelection prospects for Biden among rural voters. Joe Glauber, USDA's chief economist during the Obama years, expresses concerns over Trump's tariff approach, especially with China, as it poses a risk of triggering another damaging trade war. The dilemma persists: Will the electoral landscape continue to be dominated by the slogan "Elect me because I'll send you more federal money than the other guy"?
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