Feenstra touts ‘Big Beautiful Bill,’ defends tariffs at Cedar Rapids stop

CEDAR RAPIDS — In a cramped Pizza Ranch back room with barely enough space for about two dozen people, U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra argued Friday that “affordability” will improve as President Donald Trump’s signature “Big Beautiful Bill” and tariff agenda work their way through the economy — while promising, as governor, to lower property taxes, expand health care access and sell Iowa as a landing spot for reshored manufacturing.

Feenstra, a Hull Republican in his third term representing Iowa’s 4th Congressional District, took questions on trade and tariffs, rural health care, energy development and his decision to skip several GOP candidate forums as he campaigns for the Republican nomination for governor.

Iowa will elect a new governor next year after Gov. Kim Reynolds, who has held the post since 2017, announced she will not seek another four-year term.

Feenstra is one of five Republicans running for the 2026 GOP nomination. The others are state legislator Eddie Andrews of Johnston, former state agency director Adam Steen of Runnells, business owner Zach Lahn of Belle Plaine, and pastor and former state legislator Brad Sherman of Williamsburg.

Tariffs, trade wars and ‘bringing companies back’

Trump announced a $12 billion farm aid package earlier this month to help farmers struggling to sell crops and absorb higher input costs after the president raised tariffs on China as part of a broader trade war. While many farmers welcome the assistance, commodity groups and rural leaders say it’s likely only a down payment on what’s needed — and that government aid doesn’t solve the fundamental problems of volatile markets and soaring costs.

During Trump’s first term, farmers received more than $22 billion in aid in 2019 at the outset of the trade war with China. Many farmers say they want to make a profit from selling their crops, not rely on government aid to survive.

Against that backdrop, Feenstra framed Trump’s tariff strategy as a necessary lever to rebalance trade and revive U.S. manufacturing, even as it creates short-term pressure in farm country.

“For decades, we’ve sort of been taken advantage of,” Feenstra said, arguing unequal trade relationships helped drive manufacturing overseas. “Trump finally said, You know what, enough is enough.”

He told the crowd tariffs are meant to force trading partners to open markets and push companies to move production back to the United States — and ideally to Iowa.

In a brief interview with reporters afterward, Feenstra acknowledged farmers’ frustration and described the $12 billion aid package as temporary while export markets expand and input costs come down.

“Absolutely, the 12 billion was simply a bridge,” Feenstra said. “And we all understand … that we have to open more export markets. … And we’ve got a lot of new announcements coming up for corn and soybeans, cattle, hogs, dairy, eggs. That’s going to help improve our commodity prices. We also have to lower input costs.”

He pointed to fertilizer, saying, “we took phosphate and potash, we put on the critical minerals list to make sure we get rid of the red tape and that we can make it right here,” adding that reducing costs for seed, herbicides and pesticides is also a priority.

The ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ and affordability

Throughout the stop, Feenstra tied his Iowa pitch to his work in Washington, describing himself as an architect of Republicans’ sweeping tax and spending package dubbed the “Big Beautiful Bill,” and portraying its tax provisions as central to lowering household costs.

He acknowledged that many voters still feel squeezed.

“Affordability is going to come,” Feensta said. “When you pass a big beautiful bill, it takes, you know, seven to 12 months for it to all kick in. And you're going to see that on your tax bill when you get it back. It's going to happen.”

Trump addressed the country in a televised speech Wednesday, blaming Democrats for economic strain and arguing his tariff strategy will ultimately boost growth even as public anxiety about prices remains high.

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Health care: Rural access and ACA fight

Feenstra also leaned into health care, telling attendees his experience as an EMT shaped how he thinks about rural health access — and highlighting the closure of maternity units across Iowa.

“Women are saying we have maternity units closing at an alarming rate in our state, where women are traveling 50 to 75 miles from maternity care. That’s unacceptable,” Feenstra said. “This is Iowa. We can’t have that. We got to make sure we continue to grow our critical access hospitals.”

He argued that a lack of competition is driving premium increases.

“We got to create more competition. We got to lower premiums,” he said.

This week in the U.S. House, four Republicans broke with Speaker Mike Johnson to force a January vote on extending enhanced Affordable Care Act premium tax credits set to expire at the end of the month — a change that could raise premiums for many marketplace enrollees, including rural families and some farmers.

Feenstra did not join that effort. Instead, he backed a separate House Republican package led by U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, R-Ottumwa, that does not extend the subsidies. The bill focuses on expanding insurance options for small businesses and the self-employed and offering lower-cost coverage.

About 137,000 Iowans — roughly 4 percent of the state’s population — get their health insurance through the Affordable Care Act marketplace.

Feenstra said he backed the GOP bill because he believes it will lower premiums and out-of-pocket costs, expand access in rural areas and increase transparency in drug pricing. He also pointed to roughly $50 billion Congress approved and Trump signed into law for rural hospitals.

He said he’ll keep working to cut health care costs, protect rural hospitals and improve access statewide.

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Forum criticism: ‘I have a full-time job’

Feenstra’s Cedar Rapids stop came amid growing criticism that he has skipped GOP candidate forums. Earlier this month, four of the five Republican candidates appeared at a Sioux Center forum without him, prompting rival Zach Lahn to say, “In Iowa, you must be present to win and not everyone is present here.”

Another opponent, Adam Steen, noted Feenstra scheduled his own event nearby at the same time.

Asked about the criticism, Feenstra defended his schedule.

“First of all, I have a full-time job. I’m in Congress. That’s very important,” he said. “Number two, I’m traveling the entire state. I want to make sure that everyone gets to hear my thoughts and my vision.”

Doug Dix, a 72-year-old retired resident of Hiawatha, said he’s already settled on Feenstra as his choice for governor, citing the congressman’s conservative values and background outside government.

Dix said he hasn’t paid much attention to other GOP candidates and believes Feenstra’s name recognition and base in northwest Iowa make him tough to beat. While acknowledging that congressional duties limit his campaigning, Dix said criticism over skipped forums sounds like self-promotion.

“I think he’s a perfect fit to be governor,” he said.

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