The trade war is hurting farmers, Americans must speak up for free trade

Since the founding, farmers have represented the spirit of America. Our shared values – faith, family, hard work – are embossed on the glistening brows of farmers across the nation. For those of us who don’t, it’s our duty to stand by our farmers because their success is our success, their challenges are our challenges.

Right now, America’s farmers are facing a serious new threat as they find themselves caught in the crossfire of the escalating trade war between the U.S. and other countries. They urgently need our help.

{mosads}Last spring, when the Trump administration levied tariffs on foreign steel and aluminum in an effort to protect American industries, there started what has become an ever-escalating trade war with other nations, and in doing so they perhaps unwittingly drew a target on the backs of American farmers. Since then, foreign countries affected by U.S. tariffs have levied retaliatory tariffs on American agricultural products such as soy and beef. As the size and number of U.S. tariffs have continued to grow, so has the retaliation from the rest of the world. The danger that these tariffs pose to the farming industry can’t be overstated.

That’s because even in the best of times, farming is a fragile industry. Success in farming relies on a delicate balance between relationship-building, complex supply chain networks, and of course, the weather. Farmers need consistency and stability in trade policy to stay afloat, yet by introducing uncertainty and disruption, the trade war is causing a ripple effect throughout the agricultural sector that threatens farmers. This means paycheck reductions, job losses, and even closures of many farms across America.

The administration seems to have recognized some of this damage, as they demonstrated by issuing a $12 billion bailout for farmers negatively affected by the trade war. However, further government anointment of winners and losers in the market is contrary to the stated direction by President Trump to reduce the federal deficit, to create American jobs, and to have free trade.

A one-time check doesn’t repair broken relationships with trading partners. It doesn’t help make up for a more expensive supply chain. And it doesn’t replace the daily loss of sales revenue that farmers are facing.

But farmers aren’t the only ones that will struggle as this trade war continues. Anyone who buys the food they produce (you, me, everyone) will have to pay more to feed their families. Those already struggling – the economically disadvantaged, single mothers, working families – will be especially impacted.

The economy as a whole will suffer as well, because agriculture is a huge economic driver for our country.

Take my home state of Wisconsin, for example. According to the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection, there are roughly 68,500 farms, contributing $88.3 billion to the state economy.

$88.3 billion. That’s not chump change. That’s money that goes back into the community, providing for better schools, roads, and jobs for everyone – in addition to delicious, healthy food.

As governor, I had the unique pleasure of meeting countless farmers across the state, many of whom were the second, third, or even fourth-generation of their family working at the same farm. I witnessed firsthand the incredible impact that people like that have on their community.

But this impact isn’t exclusive to farm states. In fact, farming creates economic growth and opportunity for everyone in America. According to a recent report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. exports totaled $140.5 billion in 2017, in addition to a posted a $21.3 billion trade surplus, which was over 30 percent higher than the surplus in 2016.

This is happening because the world knows that American farmers make the best stuff, and they want to buy it (as a native Wisconsinite, I’d suggest our cheese). We should celebrate this, and expand free trade to new places, so that people in every corner of the globe can have American food on their tables, and our farmers here at home can enjoy prosperity like never before.

The trade war is posing a serious challenge to our farmers. But American farmers have always risen to the challenge of the day, be it famine, war, or economic hardship. They’ve risen to the challenge because, like the American spirit, they can’t be broken, and they’ll fight for survival, as they always have.

But they don’t have to fight alone. We can join together and make our voices heard by calling our congressmen, writing letters, posting on Facebook, or joining a group advocating on behalf of farmers, like Farmers for Free Trade. I believe we can do it – because when Americans stand together with one voice, nothing is impossible.