{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://shontelbrown.house.gov/media/press-releases/congresswoman-brown-argues-trump-causing-farmageddon-foxnews-op-ed", "Congresswoman Brown Argues Trump Causing \u2018Farmageddon\u2019 in FoxNews Op-Ed", "2025-10-17", "2025", "2025-10", "Democrat", "House", "OH", "Shontel M. Brown", "B001313", "shontelbrown.house.gov", "shontelbrown", "https://shontelbrown.house.gov/media/press-releases", "scraper", "Cleveland, OH \u2013 Congresswoman Shontel Brown (OH-11), Vice Ranking Member of the House Committee on Agriculture has authored an op-ed for FoxNews.com criticizing the Trump Administration for raising costs, shrinking markets, and cutting health care for farmers and rural communities.\n\nCriticizing the devastating impacts of Trump\u2019s policies, Brown writes, \u201cThe math doesn\u2019t pencil out: higher costs on the front end, lower prices and fewer markets on the back end. It\u2019s a squeeze no amount of wishful thinking can fix.\u201d\n\nBrown\u2019s op-ed is available online and copied below:\n\nFarmageddon: Trump\u2019s Trade War and Shutdown Are Crushing the Heartland\n\nBy Congresswoman Shontel Brown\n\nBack in May, I warned that America\u2019s farm economy was under attack \u2014 that tariffs, USDA program cuts, and political posturing in Washington were hammering farmers from the farm gate to the dinner plate. Four months later, that picture has only grown worse.\n\nAcross the Midwest, combines sit idle and bins overflow with unsold grain. Corn prices are down nearly 50 percent since 2022. Soybeans have dropped 40 percent. Fertilizer and equipment costs are up double digits. And 8 in 10 farmers now say they believe the U.S. is on the brink of another farm crisis reminiscent of the 1980s. They\u2019ve even given it a name: Farmageddon.\n\nThis time, the crisis isn\u2019t a result of macroeconomic conditions \u2014 it\u2019s a direct result of decisions made by the White House.\n\nPresident Trump\u2019s reckless tariff war is crushing America\u2019s farmers. Take soybeans. China has retaliated on U.S. tariffs with a total boycott of U.S. soybeans, leaving bumper crops rotting in silos across Ohio, Iowa, and Illinois. Meanwhile, new tariffs on fertilizer, steel, and equipment have driven up production costs for nearly every crop and commodity. The math doesn\u2019t pencil out: higher costs on the front end, lower prices and fewer markets on the back end. It\u2019s a squeeze no amount of wishful thinking can fix.\n\nAnd while U.S. farmers struggle to move their grain, the administration just finalized a bailout for Argentina \u2014 a country that turned around and cut a deal with China to buy its soybeans instead of ours. Think about that: Washington is bailing out a competitor to our farmers on the brink of crisis. Unfortunately, we saw this same movie during Trump\u2019s last trade war. Farm bankruptcies soared to record highs, and Brazil walked away with our export markets. Now Argentina is lining up to do the same. And everyone knows: once you lose market share, you rarely get it back.\n\nThis isn\u2019t just economics. It\u2019s deeply personal. It\u2019s the difference between keeping the family farm for another generation and auctioning off the tractor. It\u2019s the creases across an Ohio farmer\u2019s face as he struggles to tell me he\u2019s not sure whether he wants his children to have this way of life.\n\nAnd the White House is only making it harder. Despite total control of Washington, the President\u2019s party has shut down the government rather than extend enhanced premium tax credits that keep health care affordable. Finding affordable health care as a farmer is difficult enough as it stands. But now, premiums are set to skyrocket. In fact, in rural countries, premiums are set to increase an average of 107%, a larger increase than in our cities.\n\nMoreover, when USDA shuts down, farmers get shut out. That means delays to critical farm loans, conservation payments, and disaster relief. For farmers, it\u2019s a double whammy: no markets, no safety net, and now, no one to pick up the phone.\n\nWhat is the solution? Well, the president is floating a $14 billion bailout for farmers \u2014 a temporary fix for a self-inflicted wound. We saw how this went in the first trade war, when payments were mismanaged and failed to help the farmers who were hardest hit. Even the President\u2019s allies are skeptical. I agree with Senator Jim Justice (R-WV), who said funding bailouts with tariff revenue is \u201clike putting a Band-Aid on cancer.\u201d Farmers don\u2019t want bailouts; they want a fair shake. They want open markets, stable policy, and a government that has their back.\n\nSo let\u2019s be clear: there is a way out of this mess.\n\nFirst, reopen the government and extend the enhanced premium tax credits that a quarter of all farmers rely on. It\u2019s time to get the USDA back to full strength and ensure that rural families can afford their health coverage.\n\nSecond, end the trade war that\u2019s hollowing out American agriculture. Stop punishing the very people who feed and fuel this country.\n\nThird, if the president won\u2019t end his reckless trade war, Congress must step in to reclaim our constitutional authority over tariff policy. I plan to introduce legislation soon that would require USDA to report on the impact of any proposed tariffs on farm country, giving farmers an extra tool to plan for the future. I welcome my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join.\n\nAnd finally, let\u2019s expand domestic markets by authorizing year-round E15 fuel. This is a commonsense, bipartisan step that would boost corn demand, lower gas prices, and strengthen our energy independence.\n\nThis is only a start, but our Farmers need a real plan.\n\nBecause what\u2019s happening in farm country isn\u2019t some distant problem. It\u2019s America\u2019s problem. When farms go under, towns go quiet. When farmers stop buying seed, tractors, and feed, the hardware store closes, the diner empties, and the local school loses its tax base. The ripple effects reach every kitchen table in America \u2014 in the cost of food and in the strength of our economy.\n\nPresident Trump can end this crisis today by reopening the government and ending the trade war that\u2019s driving farm country to the brink. And if he won\u2019t, Congress should step up and do it for him.\n\nBecause this isn\u2019t just about crops or commodities. It\u2019s about a way of life that feeds our nation, fuels our economy, and defines who we are.\n\nIf we let that slip away, we\u2019ll have no one to blame but ourselves.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T19:32:54Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://shontelbrown.house.gov/media/press-releases/congresswoman-brown-argues-trump-causing-farmageddon-foxnews-op-ed"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 2.153114415705204, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}