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Trump woos farmers despite trade, immigration anxiety
Story Date: 1/11/2018
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Source: POLITICO'S MORNING AGRICULTURE, 1/10/18
President Donald Trump may be a born-and-bred New Yorker who is more comfortable in business suits than in blue jeans. But he's managed to maintain a bastion of support among farmers and ranchers as he nears one year in office, reports Pro Ag's Catherine Boudreau.
During interviews with more than a dozen members of the American Farm Bureau Federation who attended the group's annual convention in Nashville, producers said Trump was the first president in decades who seemed to listen to their concerns. His frequent mentions of patriotic symbols like the flag also appeared to please the crowd.
"I've been back on our family farm since 1992, and this is the first time we've had a president pay so much attention to agriculture," said Renea Jones Rogers, who grows 600 acres of fresh market tomatoes in eastern Tennessee, and was recently appointed to the USDA Farm Service Agency's committee in the state. "He really wants to hear what farmers have to say and make things better."
Sticking with Trump while holding out for clarity: Missing from the president's remarks, however, were any assurances that the U.S. would remain in NAFTA - a move that would be disastrous for many farm sectors that have been facing an economic downturn due to low commodity prices. Nor did he promise to improve a visa system for migrant agricultural workers to ease long-term labor shortages as he pursues a crackdown on illegal immigration.
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