Schweitzer: Need to build road beyond bridge payments for farm success

The $12 billion farm aid package announced this week by the Trump administration might be welcome relief for producers in the short term, but the funds don’t go far enough to address the estimated more than $40 billion in losses U.S. farmers are facing because of tariffs, Montana Farmers President Walter Schweitzer said.

“This ‘bridge’ gets us to the middle of the river. We not only need to build a bridge across the river, but we need to build a road beyond,” Schweitzer said Monday. “We’re going to have to spend a lot of money to incentivize customers to come back to us when this is all over. The old adage, ‘It is easier to find a new customer than to get one back,’ is true today more than ever in agriculture,” Schweitzer said, adding that this year’s tariffs have accelerated the trade deficit in agriculture that appeared for the first time in 60 years in 2019 because of tariffs during Trump’s first term.

The $12 billion in bridge payments is not a long-term fix for inflation and lost markets, both caused by this administration’s trade policies, Schweitzer said.

“We didn’t need a bridge before the tariffs started during Trump’s first term caused our longtime trade partners to find other outlets for purchasing commodities and left American consumers and producers to swim against the current of inflation,” Schweitzer said.  “Even if we took all the revenue consumers paid on tariffs and gave it to farmers and small businesses, it would not offset their losses, and consumers would be left still holding an empty bag.”