Tag: opinion
New tariff bailouts balloon federal farm aid to record highs
Columnist Alan Guebert analyzes the rising dependency on federal subsidies as a new $11 billion request balloons 2026 farm program payments to $55.3 billion. The piece contrasts current tariff-driven taxpayer bailouts with historic net farm income data and export market trends.
Congress is out to lunch: USDA proceeds with 23% job cuts
With lawmakers in session for only a handful of days this summer, Congress is failing to provide oversight for a sweeping USDA reorganization. Alan Guebert details how the agency plans to slash its workforce by 23% and move headquarters out of Washington, D.C., without a budget fight.
‘I don’t go looking for trouble…’
From winter droughts to Middle East war costs and a partisan Farm Bill split, U.S. ag is facing a "perfect storm" of economic trouble in 2026, writes columnist Alan Guebert.
Commentary: Looking back at a year of putting Ohio farmers first
Ohio FSA Director Don Jones reflects on the president's second term in office and how it impacted Ohio agriculture.
Guebert: More USDA money means less farm program reform
Alan Guebert writes that Congress is trading real farm reform for record-breaking bailouts. Discover why surging subsidies and tariffs are failing rural America—and what must change.
The stark contrast between a morning snowfall and the tragedy in...
Longtime Farm and Dairy Columnist Judith Sutherland has spent years finding beauty in the everyday, but today her view is stark. Following the tragic shooting of Alex Pretti by ICE agents in Minneapolis, Judith weighs in on the tactics she describes as embarrassing and cruel.
Can someone please give rural America some love?
Despite strong election support, rural communities face deep cuts to SNAP, Medicaid and farm programs. Alan Guebert explores the real-world economic math of these losses.
USDA begins 2026 down 20% in staff with plans to cut...
Opinion columnist Alan Guebert dicusses how more than 20,000 USDA employees left in 2025, sparking fears of a "brain drain" as the agency manages a $234B budget and new relocation plans for 2026.
Alan Guebert: Figures don’t lie, but we often lie to ourselves
Explore the true cost of 2025’s ag policy, from record export deficits and tariffs to billions in hidden subsidies that challenge fiscal integrity.
Predicting the winter
Gordon Meeder offers his insight on winter folklore, believing the best prediction comes with patience: We’ll know how bad it was when May arrives.
