Democratic senators have asked the Agriculture Department to step up support for farmers. In a letter to Department Secretary Brooke Rollins, the senators say many farmers are facing difficult times.
"Farmers are making decisions right now about fertilizer usage and their crop mix and are working with their bankers to figure out if they can secure the financing they need to continue farming this year."
The letter was sent by Senate Agriculture Committee ranking member Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., and 14 other Democratic senators. They said some farmers are facing a potential financial disaster. "Without the timely delivery of economic and disaster assistance, farmers face the prospect of reducing plantings or liquidating assets to remain in business as they head into another potentially difficult growing season."
The senators said, "As you work to establish priorities for the coming weeks and months, we urge you to move forward as quickly as possible on providing disaster relief for farmers."
The delivery of the letter to Rollins coincides with tariffs being imposed by President Donald Trump on Canada and Mexico, which some experts claim will put more pressure on U.S. farmers to weather turbulent markets for their crops.