INDIANAPOLIS – Even after downplaying the effects of tariffs that have harmed farmers nationwide, it would come as no surprise if Rep. Braun had applied for subsidies so that he could personally benefit from money set aside for tariff relief considering his holdings in corn and soybean farmland.
Late last month, the first round of payments began going out from the $12 billion set aside by the Department of Treasury for farmers harmed by the recent rounds of tariffs. According to his personal financial disclosure form, Rep. Braun’s vast real estate investments include thousands of acres of farmland – much of which is in corn and soybeans, two of the crops most harmed by the tariffs being leveled on Hoosier farmers.
Given Rep. Braun’s significant farmland investments, the tariffs that have driven down the value of corn and soybeans have certainly affected his own crops. Yet while Rep. Braun has repeatedly relied on the government, accepting subsidies in the past for his agricultural holdings and repeatedly writing legislation to cut taxes on his timber holdings, he has not made clear if he’s applied for any tariff relief himself.
After all, publicly accepting tariff relief would be quite the turnaround for Rep. Braun. The Senate candidate has repeatedly brushed off concerns about the tariffs from Hoosier farmers, calling their reactions “overdramatized” and telling them to accept “short-term pain.” Up until the day the $12 billion in subsidies were announced, Rep. Braun made clear he believed farmers didn’t need them, but flipped his position the very next day after the Trump Administration announced the payments.
“Last week’s news that subsidy checks for farmers affected by the recent tariffs had begun to go out must have caused quite the dilemma for Rep. Braun. It’s unclear which urge won out – his yearlong effort to downplay the effects of the tariffs, or his constant effort to fatten his wallet at the expense of taxpayers,” said Michael Feldman, spokesman for the Indiana Democratic Party. “It would be the height of hypocrisy for Rep. Braun to tell farmers to accept ‘short-term pain’ due to tariffs while applying for compensation for his own corn and soybean investments, but that doesn’t mean it would be out of character.”
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