Farmers across the U.S., especially in agricultural powerhouses like Illinois, are expressing deep concern over President Trump’s sweeping new tariffs. These duties, aimed at nearly all global trading partners except Russia, echo his previous trade war, which cost American farmers $27 billion in lost sales as global buyers turned to other countries.
This time, however, the stakes are higher. Inflation, high interest rates, and plummeting crop prices—down roughly 40% since 2022—have left little financial cushion for small and mid-sized farmers. Many fear a new wave of retaliatory tariffs will shrink export markets again, especially for major crops like soybeans and corn, just as they had begun to rebuild relationships disrupted by the previous trade war.
Although Trump’s administration exempted key farm inputs like fertilizer and pesticides, uncertainty looms. Past bailouts, such as the $28 billion distributed during his first term, are unlikely to be repeated due to a depleted fund and a strained federal budget.
Advocates are lobbying for tariff relief and pushing for targeted trade negotiations, but without immediate financial support, rural America may face an agricultural crisis—threatening both livelihoods and a key base of Trump’s political support.
If American farmers, once strong supporters of Trump’s policies, begin to feel the full weight of repeated trade wars, will the political tide in rural America start to shift—and what will it mean for the future of U.S. agriculture policy?
