U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley, the Ranking Member of the Senate Budget Committee, has responded to the Trump Administration's announcement of a $12 billion bailout package for American farmers affected by recent tariffs. The bailout aims to assist farmers who have experienced significant financial losses after foreign governments reduced or stopped buying U.S. agricultural products, particularly soybeans.
According to Merkley, these losses stem from President Trump's tariff policies. "The financial strain U.S. farmers have faced throughout this year has been devastating and completely avoidable. There is only one person to blame – Donald Trump. Soybean farmers were projected to have a bumper crop this year – and they did – but Trump’s self-inflicted tariff agenda left farmers with no market to sell to. Now, the Trump Administration is using U.S. tax dollars to provide a bailout to farmers to fix the President’s mistakes. Unfortunately, for many family farms, it’s too late. Farmers are the latest to suffer at the hands of the Trump families lose and billionaires win agenda," said Ranking Member Jeff Merkley.
Merkley also pointed out that farm bankruptcies have increased by nearly 60% compared with 2024 as a result of these policies.
He further criticized the bailout plan for its impact on taxpayers: "This bailout by the Trump Administration not only does very little to support farmers who have faced significant loss this year, it also puts another strain on the pocketbook of the American taxpayer." Merkley added that since U.S. consumers and businesses initially bore the cost of tariffs imposed by President Trump, using taxpayer funds for this bailout means taxpayers are effectively paying twice for these policies.
