After Donald Trump won again after the presidency, Rebecca Carlson was counting this year that things changed for his 1,300 acres of fields in North Michigan.
The farm has been in his family for generations, but has been struggling in the last several years Increasing cost of fuel, fertilizer and other operating expenses. Then, last year, bad weather wiped out the majority of his crop. But Trump’s return, he thought, will help in reversing things.
“I was hoping to see a harsh change for better for my farm because Republicans have always been for the American farmer,” said Republican and Trump supporter Carlson.
Prices for Cherry, its main crop, had increased during Trump’s first term Competition was cut from abroad after her policies, and she was expecting a similar economic boost this time. Instead, his farm has been caught in broad government funding freeze, his ability to hire the workers for this season’s crop has been put in danger. If he is unable to use his farm -awarded grant funds, it can leave him in a loan of $ 200,000.
Carlson said, “I believe you, I gave blood to Republican. However, it has left a sour taste in my mouth.” “During Trump’s first administration, a lot of farmers – not all, but a lot of farmers – saw positive side for their tariffs and their agricultural behavior.”
“Now, we are not seeing this,” he said. “Now, we are looking real opposite.”
Voters in rural and agricultural-related sectors have been one of the most frequent grounds of Trump’s support as they emerged on the political scenario for the first time a decade ago. But in the early days of his second administration, the economy has presented a lot of risk to this sector. Trump’s proposed tariffs can increase the price of grains and fertilizers by reducing demand abroad for US agricultural products. Immigration can cripple the Crackdown Farm Workforce, where an estimated 40% of the workers lack proper documentation to work in the US, meanwhile, spending, cuts and freeze affects the federally funded programs providing loans and grants to farmers.
Trump has accepted his support from farmers and talked about how their policies will benefit by reducing food imports from abroad, which can increase demand for some American-developed products.
Trump said during his address to the Congress this month, “Our new business policy will also be very good for the American farmer – I love the farmer.”
But Trump admitted that “an adjustment period” would be because his policies take shape. The President said that farmers would “be tolerated with me again” as they did during their first term, when the tariffs they had imposed on China resulted in anti -anti -counter tariffs on a border of American agricultural products, leading to America’s exports to China.
Agriculture Secretary Brook Rolins said on Friday that the department was “watching the program to help reduce any economic devastation which could happen to some of our farmers.” Asked if it would include direct payment, Rollins said, “We are working right now.”
While the situation moves forward with the tariff, Carlson says he does not have much time to wait to solve his problems. Through the H -2A visa program, their farm was given a grant of $ 400,000 through the US Agriculture Department to help pay the costs related to hiring seasonal workers from abroad, which farmers have used to hire temporary agricultural workers for years.
The USDA has described the program on its website to overcome the lack of labor on American fields and reduce illegal immigration. It supports $ 65 million in funding from the American Rescue Plan, a Kovid stimulation bill passed in 2021.
But now, funding seems to be frozen for that program. Farmers like Carlson have been unable to reimburse the expenses that they have already been made under the grant, and no official guidance has been made from the USDA whether they will receive reimbursement for future expenses, Michael Marsh, the head of the National Council of Agriculture employers, a business group who works with several farmers using H -2A Visa program.
Marsh said, “It is like that the rug has been taken out of you.”
It is abandoned that farmers are left to borrow money, while they wait to reimburse for expenses they have already paid under the grant. And this means that they are uncertain whether to proceed at the extra cost of hiring workers from abroad, Marsh said.
Marsh said, “We are getting perfect in the middle of the busy weather, where we are either planting crops or sorting vines and trees, where we actually need workers here,” said Marsh. “But now, you are out of the money you are planning to be there.”
The Agriculture Department did not respond to the request for comment about the funding situation.
Farmers are not alone in feeling the effects of cutting and funding across the government, many of which are at the center of court quarrels. Shortly after assuming the post, Trump issued executive orders stopping some funds from former President Joe Biden’s inflation reduction act, along with funds for programs promoting diversity, equity and inclusion. Trump is also cutting grant to research institutes and destroying entire agencies such as USAID, and many contracts and grants coming from those agencies.
Carlson was planning to use its USDA grant funds to appoint 10 temporary workers from Guatemala to help with this year’s crop. Grants will help pay essential workers and visa fees and aircraft fare on their assets to fly from the US and from the US
He said that the workers added to his farm, they said. Since handling the family farm in 2019, most of the labor has been done by her, her husband, two -year -old employees and some local seasonal workers. With additional help, she can run several changes in a day, which can be more and more harvested of her crop before spoiling her crop. It will also give more time with his four children, including his 3 -year -old twins.
The program has not been cheap or easy to bring foreign workers, but he saw it as the only way to promote its workforce.
“American worker does not like labor, he does not like to do laborious work,” Carlson Said. “They don’t want to do hard labor, and that’s disappointment, because we would like to hire American workers, but we can’t find them to show. We can’t find them to follow. We can’t find them to finish the season.”
Carlson is trying to get an answer from the USDA about his grant status, but his grant manager told him that he was “waiting for guidance from leadership.” When he recently chased further, he received an out-office email.
“We have no direction from our grant project managers,” he said. “We have asked him, do we continue to fulfill our milestones and meet our goals? Or do we stop and wait? We all come back with a response.” There is an automatic message. “
To prepare for the arrival of the workers, it involves renovation of housing on his property to bring it to the code, Carlson has already spent $ 200,000 of his own money, which she was expecting to receive reimbursement under her grant contract. Without that money in his bank account, he does not expect to have money to pay his existing employees to get through the growing season.
Carlson does not have much time to decide whether to spend more to bring workers. As of April 5, she is believed to have purchased aircraft rent for the workers that she was planning to hire, who were to come in May.
“We are at the point where we do not get this funding, there may be issues of bankruptcy,” he said. “American farmer is now failing because you are cold to help the American farmer.”
