Sep 18, 2024Presidential candidates provide positions to American Farm Bureau
Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump revealed their priorities for American agriculture in responses provided by their campaigns to a questionnaire distributed by the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF).
Farm Bureau asked the Democratic and Republican presidential nominees to respond with their stances on several topics that directly affect farmers, ranchers and rural communities. Topics include crop insurance, taxes, labor and rural infrastructure.
“The challenges facing America’s farmers and ranchers continue to mount, from falling commodity prices to stubbornly high supply costs,” AFBF president Zippy Duvall said in a news release. “The next president will set the agenda for trade, regulatory reform, labor and sustainability. It is important that our members, and others in rural America, know where the presidential candidates stand on issues that will affect the vibrancy of their communities and their ability to pass farms to the next generation.”
The questionnaire includes 14 questions covering the topics listed as well as food system resiliency, regulatory reform, international trade, sustainability and energy.
The answers are presented unedited, to give members an unfiltered look at each candidate’s platform. AFBF has invited candidates from both parties to respond to election questionnaires for more than 40 years.
The Harris-Walz campaign responded to American Farm Bureau’s questionnaire in the form of a letter. The responses are unedited excerpts of the letter.
Food System and Farmer Resiliency
Whether from the COVID-19 pandemic or geopolitical events across the globe, many have come to the realization that the role American agriculture plays is not just one that keeps domestic grocers stocked, but provides the food, fuel and fiber that feeds the world. American agriculture is a key element of national security and global food security. However, farmers can expect the largest recorded year-to-year dollar drop in net farm income in 2024. Income is estimated to be nearly $40 billion lower compared to 2023, down more than 25% due to lower prices paid to farmers for crops and livestock, and increased costs for supplies.
As president, what investments and/or policies would you support to ensure the resiliency of our food system and the American farmers who make it work?
Kamala Harris (D)
As Vice President, Kamala Harris has invested in rural America so future generations can keep farming and rural Americans can find opportunities right in their hometown. Under her and President Biden’s leadership, the Biden-Harris Administration has invested billions of dollars in federal resources to ignite long-term economic growth in rural communities that have long been left behind, helping rural communities create jobs, build infrastructure, and support economic stability on their own terms. And when they’re elected, Vice President Harris and Governor Walz will never stop fighting to create an economy where rural Americans can not just get by, but get ahead. They are committed to building an Opportunity Economy where everyone can compete and have a real chance to succeed, and where everyone, regardless of who they are or where they start, has an opportunity to build wealth for themselves and their children.
Vice President Harris and Governor Walz will also promote competition in agriculture markets to ensure farmers and ranchers are treated fairly. As part of the lowering costs agenda she laid out last month, Vice President Harris made clear that she will direct her Administration to crack down on unfair mergers and acquisitions involving big food corporations to help create a level playing field for competition in which all farmers and ranchers thrive and consumers have more choices and lower prices. Her plan will also support family farmers, ranchers, and other small businesses, and strengthen competition in the agricultural supply chain.
Donald Trump (R)
I am proud to be the most pro-Farmer president ever. As president, I did more for American Agriculture than any administration in history, and protected farmers from unfair foreign competition. To bring economic relief to farmers, I commit to lowering your energy bills by half in the first year. Kamala-Biden have embraced the high-cost energy policies of “net zero” that have already raised electricity rates by 30% nationwide (and projected to go much higher) and the cost of gasoline and diesel by 50-100% over the last three and one half years, all of which is dramatically raising costs of fertilizer and other key farming supplies and lowering farm incomes.
The Kamala-Biden “net zero” lunacy is the same economically destructive high-cost energy policy that is already ravaging European farm communities. We must avoid the fate of United Kingdom and Germany, two countries that are experiencing shrinking economies as a result of this misguided high-cost energy agenda. I will reverse the Kamala-Biden inflation nightmare, bring down interest rates, and reverse every single Biden-Harris burdensome and costly regulation that is contributing to the increased cost of supplies. I will also use tariffs, tax cuts, and other incentives to bring critical supply chains back home to the USA, ensure national security and economic stability, and expand overseas markets for U.S. agricultural goods.
Farm Policy Programs
Reliable food supplies and stable prices are critical for the United States’ long-term prosperity and economic well-being. Programs in the farm bill, extended through fiscal year 2024, provide key safety net and risk management tools for farmers, as well as critical tools to help farmers implement resource-conserving practices on the farm. Sustained, effective and predictable policy through the farm bill is necessary to address the threats that farmers have faced historically and new threats we now face to provide a consistent food supply. This includes defending and strengthening crop insurance for risk management that is affordable and flexible for all producers.
As president, how would you be a proponent for enhancing farm policy programs to bring certainty to farm and ranch families through crop insurance, improved risk management programs and support for beginning farmers and ranchers, while also bringing much-needed funding to agricultural research?
Harris
Vice President Harris and Governor Walz will fight to defend programs that allow farmers and ranchers to prosper, while Trump and his allies are trying to defund those programs. Vice President Harris and Governor Walz know how important crop insurance is to protect farmers from unforeseen changes in circumstances. As a Congressman, Governor Walz expanded veterans’ access to crop insurance, farm education, and job training, and led legislation to improve veterans’ access to mental health care. Trump, on the other hand, consistently proposed deep cuts to programs like these that are essential to farmers and ranchers—including coverage for changes in crop yields and price, as well as rural job training and workforce development—all to pay for his tax handouts to the wealthiest Americans. If he’s elected, his Project 2025 agenda will give more handouts to the super-wealthy, while making crop insurance and other necessities for family farmers even more expensive.
Trump
The American Farmer is essential to our economy and our way of life. We rely on our farmers, ranchers, and growers to ensure the safety and security of our food supply. As president, I signed a massive Farm Bill that improved agriculture programs and increased the amount of money that farmers can borrow. We will permanently end our reliance on China for all critical goods and strengthen domestic Buy American and Hire American policies.
As President I will support access and affordability to the risk management tools that were a part of the 2018 Farm Bill I signed into law. Improvements must be made to Reference Prices, Crop Insurance, Dairy Margin Coverage and more Specialty Crop Insurance. American agriculture is built on science, technology and innovation and we must stay ahead of China with our science investments.
Agricultural Labor
Farmers and ranchers need a reliable, skilled workforce. Farm work is challenging, often seasonal and transitory, and with fewer and fewer Americans growing up on the farm, it’s increasingly difficult to find American workers attracted to these kinds of jobs. Farm labor can’t all be replaced by machines, either. But the Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR) is set at an unsustainable level, making it difficult for farmers to temporary workers when they are paid at a higher rate than a full-time employee.
As president, what would you do to reform and resolve the critical labor shortage that many farmers and ranchers face each year? How would you address the issue of undocumented workers who are already working on farms across America, as well as the need for a reformed H-2A program that would help provide a long-term agricultural workforce?
Harris
Vice President Harris and Governor Walz know growers need enough workers to support our nation’s domestic food production, which is why they have supported an earned pathway to legalization and eventual citizenship for farm and other agricultural workers, in addition to strengthening the H-2A visa program—administered by both Republicans and Democrats for decades—which helps fill seasonal farm jobs with temporary foreign workers. The Biden-Harris Administration has overseen a nearly 50%increase in the H-2A program and strengthened it by making the application process more transparent, making visas more accessible to employers, and supporting employers who comply with the rules so they are not undercut by those who don’t. The Biden-Harris Administration also is investing $50 million to help improve the resiliency of the U.S. food supply chain by addressing agriculture labor challenges and protecting farm workers. Instead of reckless calls for the mass deportation of workers and families deeply rooted in our economy and communities, Vice President Harris and Governor Walz believe in tough, smart solutions to reform our broken immigration system. This means improving our legal immigration system to function better for our economy, farmers, and workers, and reform that includes both strong border security and an earned path to citizenship.
Trump
To be successful, it is not enough to invest in our economy and agriculture – we must invest in our people. Under a Trump Administration, we will grow more farm products in the USA and rebuild our country with American Hands. A Trump Administration will always put Farmers and American Workers first. I will prioritize merit-based immigration, ensuring those admitted to our country contribute to our economy and strengthen our country.
The Farm Bureau queried the candidates on many topics, including regulatory reform, clean water, tax policy, rural life and health and biotechnology. Read more of the candidates’ responses in their entirety here.
Latest News
Latino winegrape education offered
Michigan ends apple queen program
NCAE files lawsuit against DOL
Current Issue
Postharvest markets: Three Springs Fruit Farm
Connecting innovation, education at GLEXPO
Organic Grower: Keeping organics legit
Fresh Views: Leveraging social media
Farm Market & Agritourism: Understanding your market’s shoppers
Ag Labor Review: Current and past political climates and ag labor impacts
see all current issue »
