Ben Palen — a Kansas native and a fifth-generation farmer and agriculture consultant — blasted President Donald Trump’s repeated tactic of putting farmers in distress and then dangling tax-funded salvation before them and hungry developers.
“[T]he Trump administration will provide several billion dollars in bailouts to farmers, with an emphasis on corn and soybean growers,” Palen wrote in the Kansas Reflector. “... Predictably, political dances followed the announcement, with various farm groups issuing statements supporting release of this money.”
“It’s pathetic,” Palen wrote. “It’s especially so when the Republican sycophants who represent Kansas farmers fall all over themselves to pay homage to Trump. How about some honest conversations about what this regime has done to American farmers via a patchwork of actions that show little understanding of international trade and so many other issues?”
Palen said there is no Republican “representative” from Kansas who is speaking the truth about the “folly from Washington D.C.,” like the damage Trump does to rural hospitals or the fact that people are going hungry because of the administration's policies. Meanwhile, farmers “are receiving just a few breadcrumbs."
"The fundamental challenges of trade policy remain unsolved, and our competitors are gleeful as they take market share from U.S. farmers," he wrote.
“The peril in farm country is real,” Palen warned. “In less than 12 months, damage done to Kansas farmers and their peers across the nation is only just beginning to be felt. This latest bailout completely fails to address the underlying issues. Again, I will ask Kansas politicians: When are you going to do your job for the people who voted for you?”
Palen lamented that those same politicians are eager to spend millions of dollars and expend state resources to woo the Kansas City Chiefs to a new stadium and the development of "entertainment districts."
“Let’s not kid ourselves,” said Palen. “Regardless of whether these deals are funded with grants, contributions from donors, tax incentives or other methods, there are adverse economic and social consequences often overlooked. … These large sums of money could be better spent. How about fixing crumbling infrastructure? How about encouraging companies to bring good-paying manufacturing jobs to the area? In the case of [Kansas University], how about big money donors helping students afford the high cost of an education, instead of being so focused on having one’s name on a sports venue?”
“Our society has some strange priorities. Maybe it’s time to focus on taking care of what we have instead of pouring enormous sums into brand new, shiny buildings,” Palen added.
Read Palen's column in the Kansas Reflector here.