$16 Billon Farm Bailout – May 24, 2019

Trump announces $16-billion farm bailout, Perdue says more possible

President Trump announced a $16-billion aid package on Thursday to buffer the impact of the trade war on farmers and ranchers this year. Speaking separately to reporters, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said billions of dollars of additional aid may flow in the future

Senate passes long-delayed disaster bill with ag relief money

On Thursday, with President Trump giving his support, the Senate passed a $19.1-billion disaster bill that includes $3 billion for farmers hit by flooding and severe wet weather this spring along with aid to producers pounded last year by hurricanes in the South, wildfires in the West, and volcanoes in Hawaii.

TODAY’S QUICK HITS

DowDuPont’s donations to lawmakers (Fast Co.): Congressional lawmakers who are either opposed to or declining to co-sponsor legislation to ban chlorpyrifos, a brain-damaging pesticide, are seeing a windfall in campaign contributions from manufacturer DowDuPont.

Drowning in giveaway milk (New Food Economy): A lesser-known part of trade-war mitigation for farmers is the donation of thousands of gallons of milk to food banks, which have to give it away before it spoils.

Perdue likes church-run food aid (Salt Lake Tribune): After touring a massive food production facility run by the Mormon Church, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said, “Government can’t do it all” in providing food aid. “The USDA could learn some lessons … on how to help people.”

Mario Batali charged (New York Times): The one-time star chef has been charged with indecent assault and battery stemming from an allegation that he groped and kissed a woman at a Boston restaurant in 2017.

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