Let’s make a deal, China

Iowa should strike its own trade deal with China instead of standing by while the federal government destroys our farm economy.

As it is now, Iowa farmers stand to lose bigly in sales of ag products to China because of President Donald Trump’s tariffs on our big Asian trading partner. In Trump’s first term he angered China, which retaliated by trading with South American farmers instead of Iowans. Iowa farmers lost a lot of business and Trump had to bail out farmers with $100 billion from the U.S. Treasury. Nobody was happy, especially the farmers who were pawns in this whole mess.

We’re heading down that same trail again with these tariffs. This time, let’s go a different route. Iowa wants China’s business. China wants our food. Let Iowa do our own deal with China before Trump screws things up even worse.

Former Iowa Governor and ambassador to China Terry Branstad could handle the negotiations. He’s a friend of China’s leader, Xi Jinping. Tell Ji we’ll send China all the soybeans, corn and pork he wants, direct from Iowa, with no tariffs.

“But wait a minute, John,” you might say. “How can Iowa have a policy that’s contrary to the federal government’s?”

State’s rights, my friends. Trump and his fellow Republicans keep telling us that states can operate better than Washington, D.C. They say states should be free to make their own laws regarding voting, abortion, speed limits, gays and lesbians, energy, schools and library books.

If that’s what our elected leaders truly believe, then why can’t Iowa determine the fate of our corn and beans?

Trump doesn’t know the first thing about agriculture. Let’s just cut out the middleman and do our own deal. We sell direct to China and China doesn’t have to pay us tariffs. And we’ll save the U.S. taxpayers $100 billion in farm payments (Elon Musk and DOGE should like that) and Iowa’s farmers will have happy Chinese customers again.

Now that I’ve settled the tariff mess, I’m available to negotiate world peace. You’re welcome.