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President Donald Trump should attempt to appeal to one of the states hardest hit by his administration's tariffs, proposing a long-overdue policy adjustment by the country's agricultural industry. Iowa.
Trump will visit Tuesday in Iowa, a state that has been shaken by retaliatory measures in response to US trade restrictions.
"I'll be going to Iowa tonight for the rally, and more!" Trump said. "Farmers (and all) are very satisfied with the USMCA!"
The word "more" could be a reference to a new policy announced by the White House and aimed at stimulating farmers in Iowa and keeping the promise made long ago by the president.
It is expected to unveil an extension of the use of the E15, a fuel blend composed of 15% ethanol – a corn-based fuel – and 85% gasoline. Currently, the Environmental Protection Agency prohibits the use of the E15 during the summer months because of smog-related concerns. The changes should remove these bans by the summer of 2019.
The year-wide expansion of the use of E15 is a long-standing goal for Midwestern politicians and the agricultural industry of Iowa, particularly Republican Iowa Sens. Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst. Trump promised to expand the use of E15 during the run-up to the 2016 election.
"He thinks it's good to have energy produced locally here and that it will be good for the agricultural industry as well as for the economy in general" , said Monday to the press a senior official of the administration.
This decision will trigger a battle with the oil industry, which opposes the switch to a higher percentage of biofuels, and could elicit negative reactions from oil state politicians such as GOP Meaning. Ted Cruz and John Cornyn. The petroleum industry argues that higher levels of ethanol can be harmful to car engines despite EPA's approval of the use of the petrol engine. E15 in all light cars since 2001.
In order to reassure the industry, the Trump administration also proposes to modify a credit system allowing petroleum refiners to bypass certain ethanol obligations.
Although this decision is a great victory for Midwestern farmers, it could also be considered an effort to mitigate the effects of escalating trade warfare that Trump is leading against China and other countries . Iowa, in particular, is expected to suffer a heavy toll of trade disputes.
According to the Center for Agriculture and Rural Development of the State University of Iowa, the gross product of the state of Iowa could cost between 1 and $ 2 billion in Trump's trade disputes. Similarly, the US Chamber of Commerce has estimated that $ 1.4 billion worth of exports from Iowa are currently subject to retaliatory tariffs from China, Canada, from Mexico and the European Union.
The use of ethanol to counter some of the damage of the trade war follows other efforts by the Trump administration to mitigate the impact of tariffs on American farmers . The US Department of Agriculture is providing $ 4.7 billion in assistance to farmers as part of one of these initiatives.
This also brings a political advantage to the GOP, which is struggling to maintain the governor's mansion in Iowa. According to the average of recent polls published by Real Clear Politics, Democratic challenger Fred Hubbell gained 3.5 percentage points over Republican MP Kim Reynolds, who was appointed governor in 2017 after Terry Branstad became Trump's ambassador to China .
In addition, David Young, the current GOP representative in the 3rd district of Iowa, faces a daunting challenge from Democrat Cindy Axne. The third district includes Council Bluffs, the site of Trump's Tuesday rally.
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