The Trump administration has announced an $8 billion relief programme to help American farmers struggling with rising diesel and production costs. The money will be distributed through the Department of Agriculture, with payments based on farmland and estimated expenses. Farmers genuinely need help: fuel is expensive, production costs are climbing, and profits are under pressure. The announcement came during a Republican campaign rally, conveniently close to the midterm elections.
And suddenly, government handouts are wonderful. The same political world that lectures ordinary Americans about personal responsibility has discovered that free market capitalism works much better when someone else pays the bills. Apparently, financial assistance is dangerous socialism until it arrives on a tractor.
The farmers deserve support, but the timing gives the whole operation the subtlety of a politician handing out cash outside a polling station. Washington gets applause, farmers get relief, and taxpayers get the privilege of funding both. Capitalism remains undefeated, largely because the government keeps paying its medical bills.