President Donald Trump’s administration on Tuesday announced plans to pay farmers up to $12 billion to compensate for losses caused by an escalating trading trade war with China and other countries.
The response from Kansas’ congressional delegation was tepid to say the least.
Here’s all of the best coverage we could gather for you, locally and from across the country about the Trump administration’s plan, how it was received in Kansas and elsewhere as well as the implications moving forward.
Let’s start locally with these stories from Team McClatchy, the Topeka Capital-Journal and the Hutchinson News. There’s also this piece from High Plains Public Radio. And then there was this tweet from Kansas House Majority Leader Don Hineman on Tuesday night:
We don't want some damn government aid. That's usually a Democrat solution. What we want are free markets. International relationships take years to develop and can be destroyed overnight. If we go down the "aid" road, be prepared to dole it for years to come.
— Don Hineman (@DonHineman) July 25, 2018
Now, here’s a taste from the national perspective with these stories from Reuters, National Public Radio, Politico, USA Today and Fox News. A story from Yahoo News suggests that the aid won’t help farmers all that much.
Also, some regional coverage from around the country if you want to get a feel for what various members of Congress are saying about the deal:
- Republican U.S. Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio says he hopes the tariffs end quickly.
- Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin compared the aid package to a Soviet-style economy.
- Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky called it “welfare for farmers.”
- Republican Sen. Ben Sasse of Nebraska called it “golden crutches.“
Bloomberg sizes up congressional reaction with this story.
