Grassley: Trump working to reduce tariffs to help farmers

CEDAR RAPIDS — U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley said Monday he’s not worried by China’s unusually large purchase of soybeans from Brazil this month because President Donald Trump is working to protect U.S. farmers by reducing tariffs that will benefit them.

China bought at least 2.4 million tons of soybeans from Brazil, an unusually large amount for a purchase this time of year, Bloomberg and others reported. While the United States is the world’s largest soybean exporter, China is the largest single buyer — and it has been diversifying its suppliers since Trump imposed tariffs during his first term and launched a trade war.

But because the United States is such a major soybean supplier as the trade war heats up again, “we have a lot of leverage,” said the Republican senator from Iowa, who serves on the Senate’s Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee. And Trump “will stand ready to help as we did in 2019 when China didn’t buy our soybeans.”

U.S. agricultural exports fell by more than $27 billion during Trump’s first term amid a trade war with China, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, prompting the federal government to send $23 billion to farmers to help offset losses. Iowa and U.S. soybean farmers were among the largest casualties of that trade war. Of the $27 billion loss, soybeans represented 71 percent of the drop.

Grassley was in Cedar Rapids to talk to 60 high school students at the U.S. District Courthouse during his sixth Federal Judiciary Youth Summit. He stayed in the courtroom following the event to answer questions from reporters.

Grassley said not only do soybeans provide food for livestock and humans, they also are used to produce biodiesel. Democratic President Joe Biden’s administration, he said, set the target for just over 3 billion gallons of biodiesel to be produced. But Congress now is pushing the Trump administration to allow 5.3 billion gallons and extend that target for several years, Grassley said — increasing the demand for soybeans.

Earlier this month, Grassley and Maria Cantwell (D-Washington state) introduced bipartisan legislation he said would restore Congress’ constitutional role in trade. Among other things, the bill would require Congress to pass a joint resolution of approval on a new tariff, otherwise it would expire after 60 days. Trump said he would veto the bill if it were to reach his desk, Axios reported.

Even with tariffs escalating the trade war, Grassley doesn’t believe it will result in a recession. “I don’t think there will be,” he said.

Recessions are declared by the National Bureau of Economic Research’s Business Cycle Dating Committee and mark a widespread and significant drop in economic activity lasting more than a few months.

“It may be a surprise that we have a president who ran on a platform and is (carrying out) that platform, but that’s what he is doing,” Grassley said. “We will have a stronger economy because of it.”

Grassley, chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, also talked about his proposal to limit federal judges from issuing “universal injunctions” — injunctions issued nationwide instead of only in the court’s jurisdiction.

In the House, GOP lawmakers passed its version of the bill last week. The bills are in response to several court rulings going against the Trump administration, from immigration to firing federal workers.

In the last 15 years, there’s been a “trend toward a single judge out of that 600 that is not only dealing with just a case before him but putting an injunction on the entire U.S.,” Grassley said. His bill would put a “stop to it” because the Constitution allows courts to hear “cases and controversy” before them — not beyond — and one case “shouldn’t affect the rest across the country.”

Grassley, during the summit in Cedar Rapids, talked to teens from 11 area high schools. U.S. District Chief Judge C.J. Williams also joined him to educate students about the judicial branch — the “less” understood of the government branches, he noted.

Williams explained the role of district judges and Grassley explained the role of the Senate in approving those nominated by the president.

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