A majority of Americans say they support President Trump’s plan to offer $12 billion in aid to farmers impacted by retaliatory tariffs from U.S. trade partners, according to a new American Barometer poll.
The survey, a joint project of The Hill and HarrisX polling company, found that 60 percent of Americans surveyed said they agreed with Trump’s move, while 40 percent said they opposed it.
The plan’s supporters were also divided along party lines. Eighty-three percent of Republican respondents said they supported giving farmers aid, while 38 percent of Democrats and 60 percent of Independents polled said they agreed. Sixty-two percent of Democrats polled said they opposed the move, while 40 percent of Independents and 17 percent of Republicans said the same.
The Department of Agriculture announced earlier this month that it would offer $12 billion in aid to farmers hit by retaliatory tariffs slapped on U.S. grain, produce and meat exports amid Trump’s escalating conflict with trade partners.
Trump had imposed tariffs on imported aluminum, steel, and Chinese goods earlier this year, prompting China, the European Union, Canada and Mexico to target U.S. agricultural exports including corn, soybeans, beef and poultry.
“This is highly wrapped up in attitudes toward President Trump. If you like Trump, you like this plan. If you dislike Trump, then you dislike this plan,” Emily Ekin, polling director at the libertarian Cato Institute, told Hill.TV’s Joe Concha on “What America’s Thinking.”
While a majority of Republicans polled agreed with the move, various GOP lawmakers, including Sens. Ron Johnson (Wis.), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), and Ben Sasse (Neb.) have spoken out against it.
The HarrisX survey was conducted on July 29-30 among 1,058 registered voters. The sampling margin of error is 3.01 percentage points.
— Julia Manchester
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