Trump to announce $12B lifeline for battered farm belt

By ROSS IBBETSON, ASSOCIATE EDITOR

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Donald Trump will announce a $12 billion taxpayer lifeline for the battered farm belt on Monday as soaring prices trigger panic inside the White House . The president will unveil the plan at a roundtable with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, lawmakers and farmers. Farmers in deep-red states have backed Trump politically but now face disastrous losses from his trade wars - particularly with China , the top buyer of American soybeans.

Donald Trump will announce a $12 billion taxpayer lifeline for the battered farm belt on Monday as soaring prices trigger panic inside the White House . The president will unveil the plan at a roundtable with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, lawmakers and farmers. Farmers in deep-red states have backed Trump politically but now face disastrous losses from his trade wars - particularly with China , the top buyer of American soybeans.

Trump slashed Beijing 's soybean imports to zero earlier this year until cutting a deal in October. China imports 29 million metric tons of beans - the world's biggest buyer - to feed its huge pork industry. With grocery prices crushing families and farm incomes in free-fall, the GOP privately fears 2026 will replay the economic backlash that buried Joe Biden in 2024 - unless Trump delivers fast relief to the farm belt. Amid White House panic over soaring prices, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent admitted Chinese tactics left soybean farmers hung out to dry during the stalled negotiations.

Trump slashed Beijing 's soybean imports to zero earlier this year until cutting a deal in October. China imports 29 million metric tons of beans - the world's biggest buyer - to feed its huge pork industry. With grocery prices crushing families and farm incomes in free-fall, the GOP privately fears 2026 will replay the economic backlash that buried Joe Biden in 2024 - unless Trump delivers fast relief to the farm belt. Amid White House panic over soaring prices, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent admitted Chinese tactics left soybean farmers hung out to dry during the stalled negotiations.

'These prices haven't come in, because the Chinese actually used our soybean farmers as pawns in the trade negotiations,' he told CBS' Face the Nation on Sunday. The White House says the aid is meant to help farmers who have suffered from trade wars with other nations, inflation, and other 'market disruptions .' In October, after Trump met Chinese leader Xi Jinping in South Korea, the White House said Beijing had promised to buy at least 12 million metric tons of soybeans by the end of the calendar year, plus 25 million metric tons a year in each of the next three years.

'These prices haven't come in, because the Chinese actually used our soybean farmers as pawns in the trade negotiations,' he told CBS' Face the Nation on Sunday. The White House says the aid is meant to help farmers who have suffered from trade wars with other nations, inflation, and other 'market disruptions .' In October, after Trump met Chinese leader Xi Jinping in South Korea, the White House said Beijing had promised to buy at least 12 million metric tons of soybeans by the end of the calendar year, plus 25 million metric tons a year in each of the next three years.

China has purchased more than 2.8 million metric tons of soybeans since Trump announced the agreement at the end of October. That's only about one quarter of what administration officials said China had promised, but Bessent has said China is on track to meet its goal by the end of February. During his first presidency, Trump also provided aid to farmers amid his trade wars. He gave them more than $22 billion in 2019 and nearly $46 billion in 2020, though that year also included aid related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

China has purchased more than 2.8 million metric tons of soybeans since Trump announced the agreement at the end of October. That's only about one quarter of what administration officials said China had promised, but Bessent has said China is on track to meet its goal by the end of February. During his first presidency, Trump also provided aid to farmers amid his trade wars. He gave them more than $22 billion in 2019 and nearly $46 billion in 2020, though that year also included aid related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Trump has also been under pressure to address soaring beef prices, which have hit records for a number of reasons. Demand for beef has been strong at a time when drought has cut US herds and imports from Mexico are down due to a resurgence in a parasite. Trump has said he would allow for more imports of Argentine beef. He also had asked the Department of Justice to investigate foreign-owned meat packers he accused of driving up the price of beef, although he has not provided evidence to back his claims.

Trump has also been under pressure to address soaring beef prices, which have hit records for a number of reasons. Demand for beef has been strong at a time when drought has cut US herds and imports from Mexico are down due to a resurgence in a parasite. Trump has said he would allow for more imports of Argentine beef. He also had asked the Department of Justice to investigate foreign-owned meat packers he accused of driving up the price of beef, although he has not provided evidence to back his claims.

On Saturday, Trump signed an executive order directing the Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission to look at 'anti-competitive behavior' in food supply chains - including seed, fertilizer and equipment - and consider taking enforcement actions or developing new regulations . With Trump's economic approval hovering in the mid-40 percent range overall and facing particular pressure in key GOP strongholds, the $12 billion package is seen within the party as a crucial measure to prevent a voter backlash in 2026 fueled by concerns about stagnant wages and inflation's lasting impact.

On Saturday, Trump signed an executive order directing the Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission to look at 'anti-competitive behavior' in food supply chains - including seed, fertilizer and equipment - and consider taking enforcement actions or developing new regulations . With Trump's economic approval hovering in the mid-40 percent range overall and facing particular pressure in key GOP strongholds, the $12 billion package is seen within the party as a crucial measure to prevent a voter backlash in 2026 fueled by concerns about stagnant wages and inflation's lasting impact.

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