Caleb Ragland, a farmer who voted for President Donald Trump in the 2016, 2020, and 2024 elections, urged him to end the escalating trade war with China because he “feels the pain” of the recent rising tariffs, Newsweek reported.
Why It Matters
Since returning to the White House, Trump has been trying to use tariffs to close the trade deficit and restore U.S. manufacturing. But economists say the American public could bear the cost of the tariffs through higher prices for goods.
On Wednesday, April 9, Trump suddenly announced that he would suspend most reciprocal tariffs on other countries, excluding China, for 90 days, and he increased tariffs on China to 125 percent after Beijing announced retaliatory tariffs on U.S. exports.
Imported Chinese goods now face tariffs of 145 percent, the highest of any country. Meanwhile, China has already retaliated with a 125 percent tariff on the United States, which could raise the price of cheaper Chinese imports. The tariffs imposed by China will also impact American soybean farmers, as China accounts for 48 percent of U.S. soybean exports.
Need to know
As Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping continue to raise tariffs one after another, Caleb Ragland, a Kentucky soybean farmer who serves as president of the American Soybean Association, pleaded with Trump to end the trade war in an article published Wednesday by the American media outlet The Free Press.
“I am one of the 500,000 soybean farmers in America who feels the pain. I rely on my own farm for 100 percent of the income for my family and the families of our three full-time workers,” Ragland wrote.
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Ragland expressed the trade war as “a gamble on American livelihoods, mainly farmers,” and urged President Trump to “please make a deal with China now” to end it.
According to Reuters, China imported 22.12 million metric tons of soybeans from the United States in the 2024-25 season. Notably, it is the top U.S. product imported into China.
Ragland wrote that President Trump’s announcement that he would impose retaliatory tariffs on countries willing to negotiate is a “sign of the president’s good faith.”
He wrote that a deal is needed because the agricultural economy has now lost strength compared to its first term after the first trade war against China, with rising inflation and production costs.
He warned that the longer the shutdown lasts, China could take its business elsewhere, like Brazil.
President Donald Trump wrote in a post on his social media platform Truth Social on Wednesday, “At some point, hopefully in the near future, China will realize that the days of ripping off the U.S.A. and other countries are no longer sustainable or acceptable.”
After Trump’s remarks, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian told reporters on Thursday, “Tariff and trade wars have no winner. China does not want to fight these wars, but is not scared of them. We will not sit idly by when the Chinese people’s legitimate rights and interests are denied… If the U.S. is determined to fight a tariff and trade war, China’s response will continue to the end.”
What Happens Next?
The full impact of the ongoing tariffs between the United States and China could be felt in the coming months.
Additionally, regarding tariffs on other countries, President Trump told reporters during a Cabinet meeting on Thursday that if he is unable to reach favorable agreements with U.S. trading partners, tariffs will return at higher rates once the pause period expires.
Newsweek’s reporting contributed to this article.
