Trump Unveils $8 Billion Farm Aid as Diesel Hits $6.32 and Rural Backlash Deepens
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Oct 26
Trump Unveils $8 Billion Farm Aid as Diesel Hits $6.32 and Rural Backlash Deepens
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Oct 26
Summary
$8 billion in emergency aid was announced Monday under a Harvest Fuel Relief Program as Trump campaigned in Kansas, targeting farmers hit by surging costs and export losses.
Diesel climbed to a late-September record of $6.52 a gallon and was still $6.32, up from $3.75 before the Iran war, while fertilizer, equipment and interest costs squeezed farms already struggling to break even.
Farm bankruptcies have jumped 85% from two years ago, and trade wars have cut agricultural exports, including a drop in the US share of China's soybean imports to 23% from about 40% before Trump's first term.
Rural political support has eroded sharply: about six in 10 rural voters disapprove of Trump's economic handling, and Fox News polling shows GOP support in rural areas down to 49% after nearly two-thirds backed Trump in 2024.
The aid follows a $12 billion farm bailout announced last December, underscoring how economic pain in farm country is threatening Republican Senate candidates in states including Kansas, Iowa, Nebraska and Texas.