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The "great majority of farmers have gotten zilch from Donald the Dealmaker," the author writes. (Photo: StevanBaird/flickr/cc)
Just Who Got Trump's Farm Bailouts?
Rich families cashed in on over half the bailout money set aside for farmers hurt by Trump’s trade policies.
Aug 24, 2019
Donald Trumploves farmers. We know this because he says so. "Farmers, I LOVE YOU!" he declared in December.
But he's been "loving" them to death, with policies that are causing farm prices to tumble, miring our ag economy in the ditch and creating a rising tsunami of farm bankruptcies.
Then came Trump's doofus of an ag secretary, Sonny Perdue, who publicly insulted farmers by branding them "whiners" for daring to complain about policies causing them to lose income and their farms.
So, as an "I love you" make-up gesture, Trump has been sending big bouquets of money to some of his beloved farmers. Our money. Lots of it -- $28 billion so far in what he cynically (and comically) calls a "Market Facilitation Program," otherwise known as a taxpayer bailout.
But Trump Love turns out to be highly selective, with more than half of the government payments going to the biggest farm owners.
The Agriculture Department initially announced a $125,000 limit on the amount any one farm could get, but every Trump deal seems to have a gimmick in it to give a special break to the slickest operators.
The slickum in this deal is that assorted members of a family are allowed to claim that they're owners of the same farm and thus get bailout bucks -- even if they do no actual farming and live in New York City!
One Missouri farm family, for example, got $2.8 million worth of subsidy love from Trump, and more than 80 families topped half-a-million in payments.
Meanwhile, the great majority of farmers have gotten zilch from Donald the Dealmaker -- and 80 percent of eligible grain farmers (the smaller producers most endangered by his bad policies) have received less than $5,000.
So Trump's "market facilitation" is squeezing the many who are most in need, while helping a few of the largest get even bigger.
An Unconstitutional Rampage
Trump and Musk are on an unconstitutional rampage, aiming for virtually every corner of the federal government. These two right-wing billionaires are targeting nurses, scientists, teachers, daycare providers, judges, veterans, air traffic controllers, and nuclear safety inspectors. No one is safe. The food stamps program, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are next. It’s an unprecedented disaster and a five-alarm fire, but there will be a reckoning. The people did not vote for this. The American people do not want this dystopian hellscape that hides behind claims of “efficiency.” Still, in reality, it is all a giveaway to corporate interests and the libertarian dreams of far-right oligarchs like Musk. Common Dreams is playing a vital role by reporting day and night on this orgy of corruption and greed, as well as what everyday people can do to organize and fight back. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover issues the corporate media never will, but we can only continue with our readers’ support. |
This column was distributed by OtherWords.
Jim Hightower
Jim Hightower is a national radio commentator, writer, public speaker, and author of the books "Swim Against The Current: Even A Dead Fish Can Go With The Flow" (2008) and "There's Nothing in the Middle of the Road But Yellow Stripes and Dead Armadillos: A Work of Political Subversion" (1998). Hightower has spent three decades battling the Powers That Be on behalf of the Powers That Ought To Be - consumers, working families, environmentalists, small businesses, and just-plain-folks.
Donald Trumploves farmers. We know this because he says so. "Farmers, I LOVE YOU!" he declared in December.
But he's been "loving" them to death, with policies that are causing farm prices to tumble, miring our ag economy in the ditch and creating a rising tsunami of farm bankruptcies.
Then came Trump's doofus of an ag secretary, Sonny Perdue, who publicly insulted farmers by branding them "whiners" for daring to complain about policies causing them to lose income and their farms.
So, as an "I love you" make-up gesture, Trump has been sending big bouquets of money to some of his beloved farmers. Our money. Lots of it -- $28 billion so far in what he cynically (and comically) calls a "Market Facilitation Program," otherwise known as a taxpayer bailout.
But Trump Love turns out to be highly selective, with more than half of the government payments going to the biggest farm owners.
The Agriculture Department initially announced a $125,000 limit on the amount any one farm could get, but every Trump deal seems to have a gimmick in it to give a special break to the slickest operators.
The slickum in this deal is that assorted members of a family are allowed to claim that they're owners of the same farm and thus get bailout bucks -- even if they do no actual farming and live in New York City!
One Missouri farm family, for example, got $2.8 million worth of subsidy love from Trump, and more than 80 families topped half-a-million in payments.
Meanwhile, the great majority of farmers have gotten zilch from Donald the Dealmaker -- and 80 percent of eligible grain farmers (the smaller producers most endangered by his bad policies) have received less than $5,000.
So Trump's "market facilitation" is squeezing the many who are most in need, while helping a few of the largest get even bigger.
Jim Hightower
Jim Hightower is a national radio commentator, writer, public speaker, and author of the books "Swim Against The Current: Even A Dead Fish Can Go With The Flow" (2008) and "There's Nothing in the Middle of the Road But Yellow Stripes and Dead Armadillos: A Work of Political Subversion" (1998). Hightower has spent three decades battling the Powers That Be on behalf of the Powers That Ought To Be - consumers, working families, environmentalists, small businesses, and just-plain-folks.
Donald Trumploves farmers. We know this because he says so. "Farmers, I LOVE YOU!" he declared in December.
But he's been "loving" them to death, with policies that are causing farm prices to tumble, miring our ag economy in the ditch and creating a rising tsunami of farm bankruptcies.
Then came Trump's doofus of an ag secretary, Sonny Perdue, who publicly insulted farmers by branding them "whiners" for daring to complain about policies causing them to lose income and their farms.
So, as an "I love you" make-up gesture, Trump has been sending big bouquets of money to some of his beloved farmers. Our money. Lots of it -- $28 billion so far in what he cynically (and comically) calls a "Market Facilitation Program," otherwise known as a taxpayer bailout.
But Trump Love turns out to be highly selective, with more than half of the government payments going to the biggest farm owners.
The Agriculture Department initially announced a $125,000 limit on the amount any one farm could get, but every Trump deal seems to have a gimmick in it to give a special break to the slickest operators.
The slickum in this deal is that assorted members of a family are allowed to claim that they're owners of the same farm and thus get bailout bucks -- even if they do no actual farming and live in New York City!
One Missouri farm family, for example, got $2.8 million worth of subsidy love from Trump, and more than 80 families topped half-a-million in payments.
Meanwhile, the great majority of farmers have gotten zilch from Donald the Dealmaker -- and 80 percent of eligible grain farmers (the smaller producers most endangered by his bad policies) have received less than $5,000.
So Trump's "market facilitation" is squeezing the many who are most in need, while helping a few of the largest get even bigger.
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