Trump’s ‘great patriot’ farmers follow him into a trade war

MADRID, Iowa — Iowa farmer Tim Bardole survived years of low crop prices and rising costs by cutting back on fertilizer and herbicides and fixing broken-down equipment rather than buying new. When President Donald Trump’s trade war with China made a miserable situation worse, Bardole used up any equity his operation had and started investing in hogs in hopes they’ll do better than crops. “He does really seem to be fighting for us,” Bardole says, “even if it feels like the two sides are throwing punches and we’re in the middle, taking most of the hits.” Trump won the presidency by winning rural America, in part by pledging to use his business savvy and tough negotiating skills to take on China and put an end to trade practices that have hurt farmers for years. “We are the frontline soldiers getting killed as this trade war goes on,” said Paul Jeschke, who grows corn and soybeans in northern Illinois, where he’s about to plant his 45th crop. The smooth-talking presidents we’ve had recently - they certainly didn’t get anything done.” When the trade war started last summer, China targeted its first round of tariffs on producers in agricultural and manufacturing states that were crucial to Trump’s 2016 victory, such as Iowa, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin.